


When The Dream Ends

by CK203



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), F/M, Fluff and Angst, Post-Episode: s03 Chat Blanc, Post-Hawk Moth Defeat
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-14
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:54:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 23,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28063542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CK203/pseuds/CK203
Summary: Adrien Agreste (18 y/o) has been suddenly plagued by dreams that feel more like suppressed memories, it only makes things worse when the dreams involve intimate moments between him and his friend Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Is it possible that these dreams aren't dreams at all, but are instead a glimpse into some alternate universe? While he sorts out these feelings, he also sorts out feelings between Marinette and his girlfriend Kagami. (takes place after Cat Blanc, Aged up fic)
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 37
Kudos: 69





	1. I Just Wanted to Know How You're Doing

“Marinette!” Adrien yelled, running towards the black haired girl “I have something to tell you” Marinette felt a push, causing her to stumble up towards the boy. “I've realized…” he took a deep breath in, getting ready for what he was about to say “I've realized that you're not just a friend to me. I’ve always felt like you were more than that” he said with a smile, his breath shaky and his voice low ‘And now I know why.” he whispered

Alya, Rose, Juleka, and Mylène all shared a collective “Ohhh?”

“Does that... does this mean that you... you like the beret?”

Adrien smiled, holding Marinette’s hand in his own, his breathing heavy and labored with the emotions that he currently felt “It means that I love you” he whispered. He leaned down and tugged her into him, their lips touching before he turned it into something passionate, expressing just how much his love for this amazing girl ran. Suddenly, just like that.

_ Adrien woke up. _

His face was warm and his chest was loose and flowing with serotonin, in fact he felt extraordinarily happy. He sat up, his heart fast as he thought about the dream, but the funny thing was, he could’ve sworn it was a memory. Adrien was always a dreamer, he dreamt almost every night from what he knew, it’s why he started writing them down in a journal, but almost all his dreams were superhero related, they also very rarely included Marinette. This time however, was the most vivid dream he had ever had, it felt like he had actually lived it just a few moments ago. 

“Adrien?” A voice called, confused “Are you alright?” it asked again.

“Yeah, I’m fine” Adrien replied flatly, looking at Kagami who lied in his bed. 

“Alright” She responded “Get back to bed” she requested, turning over and bringing some of the comforter with her, forcing Adrien into the cold. No, that was a lie, he was already cold, in fact his bed felt colder than usual, it felt hard and uncomfortable even though it was likely the most expensive mattress on the market at the time. Yet no matter what he did, something felt unnatural, something felt like he was going against what the world intended. 

‘I must be worried about something’ Adrien thought to himself. He fell back down onto his pillow, trying to forget about the dream that he had just experienced, after all that’s all it was.

_ Right? _

Adrien stood up, receiving no protest from the girl on the other side of the mattress, before walking out of the room. He pulled up his phone and quickly scrolled through it, before his hands took over and automatically hovered over Marinette’s contact. He shouldn’t call her, it was in the wee hours of the morning and she was likely having some much deserved sleep, but Adrien hadn’t talked to her in months. In fact he couldn’t even remember the last time he had a full conversation with Marinette, but still, he would not call her in the single digit hours just to have a conversation with her.

_ Adrien was weak. _

The phone rang as her name illuminated the top of the phone, it felt like it rang for hours before he heard the noise of the phone being answered. Then a second later he heard a muffled curse from her line, a few more seconds passed before he heard the next noise.

“Adrien?” Marinette asked, her voice full of exhaustion and anger.

“Hey Marinette” Adrien said happily, oblivious to the amount of anger in her voice.

“Why are you calling me at 3 am?!” She hissed “You woke me up!” she growled angrily. 

“Sorry” Adrien responded sheepishly, a hand going through his hair as he inhaled deeply “I just realized we hadn’t talked in awhile and I wanted to see how you were” he stated. 

“Adrien, you wanted to see how I was doing at three am?” She said, severely unamused. 

“Y-yeah” he responded.

“That sounds like a terrible booty call” she muttered, almost too quiet for him to hear “Go talk to your girlfriend Adrien” she suggested, trying to end the conversation. Adrien wanted to beg her to stay on the line, plead with her to just talk to him for a few minutes “are you hurt mentally or physically?” she asked with a sigh. 

“N-no” he said sadly.

“Then either talk to Kagami or go back to bed” She requested. Adrien was silent on his line, letting out a small sigh that he had no intention of releasing. 

“Marinette” Adrien started.

“Adrien, it is three in the morning” she said sternly “I need to go to sleep” she demanded. “Goodnight Adrien” she stated, sealing the fate of the conversation. 

“Goodnight Marinette” he sighed, the call ending right after he mumbled the words. He slipped his phone back in his pajama pocket, letting out one last sigh before he walked back in his room. Kagami was sleeping still, not a worry in the world as she faced the wall of his room. He slipped back into his bed and lied face up, trying to remember the last time he had even shared polite hellos with Marinette, and yet he couldn’t even remember that time. He did remember how they drifted apart in junior year, with separate classes they saw each other less which meant that they talked less. Adrien let out one final sigh, desperately trying to rekindle any amount of sleep he could get, but one thing rang in his mind.

_ I miss my friend. _

Adrien walked into school, the first week of senior year upon them, he saw Nino sitting and not daring to look at the cluster of desks beside him as Alya did the same. That was right, Nino and Alya broke up, yet another reason why he and Marinette had drifted apart so much. Even though they had ended things long ago, they were still severely bitter towards each other, not daring to be at the same place with each other. From what Adrien knew, they were like that because their breakup wasn’t necessarily a clean one, apparently it was filled with fighting and personal blows that took a toll on their mental health, yet any other prying revealed that neither of them wanted to go into details. 

“Morning Nino” Adrien stated as he sat down next to him, taking a sip out of the cardboard cup he had brought with him.

“Hey man” Nino replied coolly “Did you get any sleep last night?” he asked with a laugh. 

“Nah, I had a… Dream” Adrien responded, trying to rub away the bags from his eyes.

“Going MLK on us?” Nino joked.

“Haha” Adrien said sarcastically, Adrien’s eyes drifted to the front of the classroom as Marinette entered, looking like she had spent an entire week awake. Adrien immediately regretted all of his life choices as she sauntered along and plopped down next to Alya. “I may have called Marinette at 3 in the morning” he whispered, being sure that the two girls couldn’t hear him. 

“Dude what?!” Nino yelped “you booty called Marinette?” he giggled “Dude aren’t you still with Kagami?” he asked, obviously amused by the situation.

“It wasn’t a booty call” Adrien hissed “I just wanted to talk to her” he suggested.

“At three in the morning?” He asked with a dumbfounded expression that told adrien all he wanted to do was run around and laugh at him “Im telling you this with honesty man, you don't just call someone at three am unless you have other intentions” 

“Shut up” Adrien requested, shaking his head as he smirked a bit.

“But seriously” Nino started “Why did you call her at three in the morning?” he asked. 

“She might’ve been in my dream” Adrien responded “and my dream might’ve involved a kiss and me saying I love you” he admitted sheepishly, feeling guilty that Kagami was nowhere near his train of thought at that moment. 

“Wait, really?” Nino questioned. Adrien nodded in response, hanging his head down to avoid his friends gaze “I’m not gonna lie, that’s a bit weird man” he stated, unsure of what to make of the dream. 

“Yeah, how do you think I feel?” He asked “I’m sleeping next to Kagami and have a dream about being in love with Marinette” he groaned, slamming his head down on the desk. Nino looked at him with a small sympathetic smile, he took a deep breath in before speaking again.

“Don't worry about it man” Nino responded calmly, trying to make his friend feel better “It’s a dream, it probably means nothing” he added reassuringly. 

“Yeah… probably” Adrien responded, not exactly too sure about his answer or Ninos explenation.

“Can I ask you a question?” Nino questioned. Adrien gave a curt nod as he met the eyes of his best friend.

“Do you want it to mean nothing?” he asked, giving his friend a serious stare. 

“Of course” Adrien responded quickly, but even though his response was quick it wasn’t necessarily convincing the boy with headphones around his neck. Nino shook his head for a few moments, deciding to rephrase his question.

“Does Kagami make you happy?” he asked.

“Yeah, we’re happy” he responded, confused by the questions he was getting asked.

“No, I mean are  _ you  _ happy?” he asked, Adrien froze, he wasn’t exactly sure how he was supposed to answer that question, he was saved by some stroke of luck. Adrien didn’t need to answer the question as the teacher began his lesson. Even though he avoided answering the question, it still floated around in his head. Was he happy? He would maybe describe it as content rather than happy, but that was normal. He and Kagami had moved out of the honeymoon phase and were settled, they were comfortable together, while there weren’t any cuddles and late night kisses anymore they didn’t need them. Adrien didn’t care if he didn’t have late night cuddles or kissed.

_ Right? _

“I love you more than you’ll ever know” Adrien whispered, tracing Marinettes bare back with his finger, she was wearing one of his shirts and nothing else, but she had never looked more beautiful in her life. His finger moved down towards her rear as she peacefully murmured an incoherent response, almost overcome with exhaustion. His fingers gently ran against the smooth skin of her backside. 

“Love… you too” Marinette murmured, her words slurring as she did so, causing Adrien to let out a small laugh, his hand moving onto her thigh. 

“Get some sleep my princess” he requested, kissing her forehead. Soon enough she was asleep on his chest, her mouth slightly open while her leg draped over Adriens hip. She was his, and he loved that, he loved that he could call her his, that no one else could kiss her. No one else was going to be with her, she was his and he was hers. “My little bugaboo” he whispered. He was in love with a girl more amazing than he could ever hope, a girl who he knew both sides of, and he prayed that he could show her his own other side sometime soon, but right now he was fine with just being with her. His mind drifted from their superhero identities to the non PG moment they shared just a few minutes ago, not an act of lust or sin, but rather one of love. He smiled happily, seriously wondering if there was anything greater than this feeling right here, and then suddenly he realized he was cuddling a pillow.

_ Wait. _

Was that a dream? It couldn’t have possibly been, he was awake, fully and well aware of being awake. Was that a daydream? Was it a fantasy? Was it a hallucination?

_ No _

_ That was a memory. _

There was no possible way that was a dream, he could physically feel her skin, the way his fingers traced her soft and peachy skin, the feeling of wanting to kiss her. The way her head felt against his chest, her bare leg draped over him. The scent too, the scent overcame his nostrils as if he were living the moment, the smell of tea leaves and lavender wafting off of her hair, a smell so sweet he could live in it. 

“Adrien, why are you touching me?” Kagami asked, turning over in her slumber. The noise surprised Adrien, especially when he realized that his arm had reached over to Kagami and started to draw circles on her arm.

“Sorry, I didn’t realize” He stated, he had forgotten that Kagami hated those shows of affection, cuddling and kissing, PDA was never allowed, honestly they didn’t even kiss or hug much. It made Adrien wonder if there even was any honeymoon phase of cuddling and kissing, had that been his imagination, or had he been blind and misread something. Had it simply not even existed in the first place or had it existed and fizzled out?

_ Either way, Adrien knew that he liked that stuff. _

He liked the idea of cuddling and PDA, but Kagami was awesome and he was happy. 

_ Was he? _

Yes he was, he was happy, very happy, more happy than he had been in a very long time. The only reason that he was doubting himself was because of these stupid memories, or dreams, or whatever they were. He was in love with Kagami, he was happy, and he could spend the rest of his life like this, he  _ would  _ spend the rest of his life like this because this is what he wanted. Right now though, he had another mission, his legs forced him up, but he voluntarily walked to the bathroom, his phone feeling like a three hundred pound weight in his arm as he closed the door behind him. While he flicked on the light he walked all the way over to the other side of the bathroom and laid down in the bathtub, pulling up a long discarded text message contact.

**Adrien- Hey, are you up?**

  
**So this is** **_chapter one_ ** **there will be more chapters. This chapter was also really short so I just decided to post it here instead of extending it, mostly because I wanted to post it before I fell asleep. I hope you enjoyed and comments are always welcome and appreciated!**


	2. What Are My Intentions?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien questions what his dreams about Marinette means.

**So, I decided to rename the story When The Dream Ends, I just think that sounds much nicer that Dreams Or Memories, I hope that doesn't confuse people.**

**Adrien- Are you up?**

Adrien let out a small sigh as he looked over the message numerous times, was this a mistake? Or was it something that he needed to do.

**Marinette- Yeah, what's up?**

He smiled, immediately clicking on her contact while moving his thumb hovered over the call button, but he quickly shook his head and moved back to their texts.

**Adrien- Can I call you?**

Adrien closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, he just wanted to talk to his friend, that was all, there was nothing weird going on between them.

_ Right? _

**Marinette- Sure.**

Adrien immediately called her, excited to be able to actually talk to her.

“Hey” he whispered, making sure to make too much noise.

“Hey” Marinette responded, a slight breathy tone coming off her words. They sat in silence for a while, not sure what to do or when to do it, lucky for both of them, Marinette decided to speak first “So, what do I have to do to get a phone call at a decent hour?” she asked, her playful tone coming through the phone. Adrien let out a small laugh, it was always nice to hear her voice when she wasn’t stammering, so it seemed that whatever problem that caused her stammer had been fixed in their time apart.

“Sorry about that” Adrien winced, running a hand on his knee “you’ve just been on my mind a little lately” he stated, taking his hand off of his knee and running it through his hair, awaiting her response. 

“Oh” She whispered, trying to make it inaudible for Adrien, but in the quiet of the morning he easily heard it. “Why’s that?” she asked. Adrien thought for a few seconds, he wouldn’t advise her of his dreams, after all that’s likely not something you normally bring up.

“I realized that we hadn’t talked in awhile” He responded, his voice still low in a whisper, while his legs felt unusually cold against the smooth tile of his bathroom floor.

“I guess it has been awhile” she stated, trying to remember when they had last spoken for longer than a few moments “But then again, we never were great friends, I mean even when Alya and Nino were together we didn’t talk much”

_ That Hurt. _

Adrien felt his heart shatter a little, but he hated how he couldn’t disagree, she was right, they were never great friends even when their best friends were together. His eyes stung a little, back then he considered Marinette one of his closest friends and yet they weren’t even that close. “Yeah… I guess” he responded, trying to not let his disappointment break through the phone. He decided to not let her add onto his statement, instead choosing to speak again “How are you and Luka? You two are dating, right?” he asked.

_ Silence. _

At first he thought that she might’ve dropped her phone or possibly fallen asleep, maybe she just didn’t hear the question, but then she responded.

“We… uh… broke up” she responded, the silence built up between them for a long while before she added something “I mean, we never really dated” she explained, Adrien could almost feel the shrug through the phone. 

“I’m sorry Marinette” Adrien stated, but he noted how she didn’t exactly seem upset. Sure she took awhile to answer, but she wasn’t necessarily sad-sounding while explaining what had happened.

“It’s fine Adrien” she said coolly “Things happen, you know?” she asked.

“Yeah… things happen” Adrien repeated, thinking about what could have happened between Luka and Marinette, maybe he would text Alya sometime that day to find out.

“What about you and Kagami?” Marinette asked, hoping to take the spotlight off of herself. Adrien looked towards the door, Kagami was asleep just past the door, and yet here he was, whispering to Marinette over the phone.

“We’re still together” He whispered “A little over a year now” he added, but the more that he thought about it the more he realized that he and Marinette stopped talking almost right after he started dating Kagami, so either it was a big coincidence or Marinette didn’t like Kagami. He couldn’t ignore the possibility that he himself, also let them fall out of touch, but he chose to think that it wasn’t even a possibility anymore, it had happened, and it wasn’t worth dwelling on the past. “You like Kagami right?” he found himself asking, not sure why he was exactly asking “I mean as a person, you like her?” he asked, clarifying his statement.

“Yeah, she seems nice” Marinette responded, yet he had no time to reflect on her answer when a knock came from his door.

“Adrien? Are you alright?” Kagami asked from the other side of the door, slightly knocking her knuckles against the wooden door. Adrien felt his face flush and his heart drop, there was no way Marinette didn’t hear that, after all it was a louder speaking voice compared to his hushed whisper.

“Yeah” he responded “I’m just not feeling great” he proposed.

_ That wasn’t a lie. _

He now felt terrible for lying to Kagami, but he wanted nothing more than to continue his conversation with Marinette, yet that also seemed like an impossible scenario.

“Alright” Kagami responded, her voice growing distant from the door, as he raised his phone back to his ear Marinette spoke before he could beg to keep the conversation going.

“I’m going to get to bed” She spoke, Adrien breathed in deeply before he responded, knowing there was no way he could convince her otherwise. 

“Alright” He stated “I’ll talk to you later Marinette-'' he whispered with a sigh, right after he finished his sentence, the call was ended by Marinette. He put his face in his hands, feeling both guilty and upset for two different reasons.

_ For two different girls. _

He turned off the light and walked out of the bathroom, climbing back into his bed, he turned and faced the bathroom while his back pointed towards Kagami, he let out one final sigh as he closed his eyes, trying to recapture any amount of sleep that was left over.

Marinette nuzzled into his neck, using her nose to try and access more warmth from his body, Adrien instinctively pulled her into him, squeezing her waist and pulling her onto his chest. 

“I love you Adrien” Marinette stated tiredly, her hands finding his hair while gently scratching the back of his head. 

“I love you too Marinette” Adrien stated, but as he opened his eyes and he realized what he just said, Marinette was gone. He was back in his room, he quickly turned and looked at Kagami who was definitely a bit stiffer than before, deciding not to mention anything, he quickly and carefully fell to his pillow, trying desperately to fall asleep. 

“Is everything alright?” Adrien questioned as he and Kagami walked towards a restaurant, they were both nicely dressed, in fact this was their 13 months of being together, so they decided to go out for breakfast.

“Yes” Kagami said flatly. 

_ Something was wrong. _

“Are you sure?” He asked, holding the door for her. 

“Yes Adrien” She stated with a hint of agitation, walking into the fancy restaurant. Adrien let out a silent sigh, closing his eyes as he thought about the words he stated so early in the morning, had she even heard him talking to Marinette last night?

“You know you don't need to bring me out to all these expensive places” Marinette stated, hugging his arm. He was dreaming once again.

“Im allowed to spoil my girlfriend” Adrien whispered, giving her hair a quick smell, enjoying the scent of her fruity shampoo. Marinette smiled as they opened the door to the restaurant, numerous people eating breakfast inside. 

“I like that” Marinette replied “Being your girlfriend” she clarified. 

“I think I would like it better if you were my wife” Adrien joked, giving Marinette a playful smile. Marinette blushed, but nonetheless she had a smile on her face, and even though Adrien was joking he had to admit that it sounded nice, waking up while cuddling Marinette, gently playing with the ring on her finger. 

“Adrien” Kagami stated, waving a hand in front of his face “Are you alright?” She asked.

“Y-yeah” he said breathlessly “I just zoned out, sorry” He apologized, his heart racing as serotonin spread through his body. He never had one of the dreams during the day, he wasn’t even asleep. 

_ So they definitely weren’t dreams.  _

“It’s fine” Kagami said, a small smile on her face “Come on, let's eat” she requested, guiding him towards the hostess of the restaurant. Adrien allowed himself to be pulled as he thought about one thing.

_ Why did he let himself hope that his dream was reality? _

“Are you sure nothings wrong?” Adrien asked, worried she heard what he said last night.

“Yeah… it’s nothing… you just kinda said something in your sleep last night” Kagami stated “Nothing too important” she suggested, but Adrien wanted to die. Kagami had heard him last night and he was totally screwed, here he was with his girlfriend while having dreams about being in love with Marinette. 

_ He felt his eyes sting as he fought back tears of aggravation. _

“I called her again” Adrien admitted to Nino as he walked with him “At like one in the morning this time” he explained, none too happy with how things were going with these memories. Nino turned to him and looked at him with surprise.

“Dude, I’m saying this honestly” Nino started “if you keep doing that then Kagami is going to end things with you so quickly” he added, his words stinging Adrien’s heart. 

“Things aren’t going great with me and Kagami already” Adrien explained with an exasperated groan “I may have said “I love you Marinette” last night” he said sheepishly, Nino facepalmed.

“Do you even want to be with Kagami? Because it sounds like you’re physically trying to end things with her” he suggested with aggravation.

“I can't control this Nino!” Adrien yelped.

“Did she hear you say it?” he asked, trying to keep his composure which seemed like a futile task at the moment. 

“Yes” Adrien sighed “She doesn’t seem too phased about it though” He suggested. 

“Trust me, she is” Nino hissed, his tone icy and mean. 

“What am I supposed to do Nino?” Adrien asked, aggravated “I can't control these dreams” he said defensively.

“Let’s think about this Adrien” Nino started “you could maybe not call Marinette at the middle of the night!” He yelled “because I guarantee when she finds out she’s not going to be happy and go lucky” he barked. He was right, he couldn’t continue calling Marinette at the middle of the night just to talk, whether he liked it or not he knew one thing.

_ You don't call someone in the middle of the night without other intentions. _

“So I stop calling her late at night?” he asked, a small sigh escaping his mouth.

“How about you just stop calling her” Nino suggested “You’re dating Kagami and it was funny the first time you called her, but a second time means that it’s threatening to become a routine” he stated. Adrien closed his eyes, trying to sort out all the thoughts that swam in his mind.

“You’re right” Adrien admitted, maybe that’s why they drifted apart in the first place, he needed to devote his time to Kagami and Kagami only. Calling another girl in the wee hours of the morning might lead to something he had no desire to do, and soon it would be two girls hurt because of him. He breathed in the warm late summer air as he thought about it, he hated the idea of not talking to Marinette, even though he had done it for a full year, but it needed to stop, and it was going to stop.

“Yeah, he called me at like one in the morning last night” Marinette admitted “It was kind of weird” she added. 

“How was it weird?” Alya asked.

“Because I kind of get the feeling that he was hiding it from Kagami” she suggested. Alya scoffed playfully, giving her friend an amused look.

“Of course he was” Alya said with a laugh “no one calls a girl at one in the morning, especially one who isn't his girlfriend” she stated as if it were a fact listed in a text book.

“So are you saying he has other intentions?” Marinette asked sheepishly. Frankly she was terrified of that possibility, she was fine right now, perfectly fine in her single life and definitely didn't need an Adrien crawling his way into it. 

“I’m not saying anything” Alya said flatly “but I am asking you this, if he comes knocking, will you answer?” she asked. Marinette thought long and hard about it, no matter what, she couldn’t find the answer, on one hand he was with Kagami and she would never cheat or assist in cheating, but on the other hand if they broke up, would that change things? In reality she only knew one thing that was as clear as day to her.

_ If Adrien called in the middle of the night again she would not answer.  _

That was obvious, she wasn’t going to answer him when he was obviously hiding it from Kagami, and she realized that if there was no possibility of ill intentions then there was no reason to hide it, or as her mother says.

“If you’re innocent then there is no reason to run” 

So the likelihood that Adrien had  _ those  _ intentions in mind was likely slim, but no matter what, if he was hiding it then his intentions weren’t one hundred percent innocent. 

“I’m not sure” Marinette stated “I won't let him cheat on Kagami so unless something changes then no” she said, stating a fact “but I don't know if I really see anything in him anymore, so even if something does change then it’s probably still a no” she suggested. 

“Alright girl, just don't let this get out of hand” Alya pleaded, as if talking from first hand experience. Their paths separated as Alya walked towards her own house and Marinette walked towards hers, multiple questions running through her head, but the biggest of all rang like a siren in her mind.

_ What were Adriens intentions? _

The morning was more stressful than Adrien would’ve expected, the only thing on his mind were his dreams of Marinette, it was still early in the morning and yet he dreamed of going back to sleep. He sat on his bed, his phone out as he hovered over his instagram, eventually deciding against and moving into his text conversations. He stared at his phone, exhaustion hitting his eyes as he looked at the text conversation that was up.

_ Marinette. _

He said he wouldn’t  _ call  _ her in the middle of the  _ night.  _ He never said anything about the middle of the day. He thought about what to say

**Adrien- Hey Marinette, I have random dreams about being in love with you**

Well that definitely wasn’t a good way to start a conversation, he deleted the current message and thought more. 

**Adrien- Hey, enjoying your Saturday?**

No, that sounded weird when he read it in his head, once again he deleted the message.

**Adrien- Hey, what are you up to?**

Somehow that seemed like his best option, so he pressed send.

“Who are you texting?” Kagami asked, stepping out of the bathroom. That’s right, Adrien had completely forgotten that Kagami basically lived with him now. 

“Marinette” Adrien responded truthfully. Somehow the truth seemed like the wrong answer, that was evident when Kagami’s face twisted into a grimace, none too happy with the name that she had just heard. 

“Oh” she stated in a passive aggressive tone.

“Is something wrong? You sounded the same today at breakfast” Adrien stated, not sure if what he was saying was the right course of action.

“It’s just” she started, thinking about the way she should phrase her statement “Can you stop talking to Marinette?” 

_ That was definitely not the way to phrase it.  _

“What?” Adrien asked, dumbfounded.

“What do you mean?” She asked, going on the defensive “You said “I love you Marinette” last night in your sleep!” She yelped “I don't think you should really be talking to a girl you proclaimed your love for in your dream!” she said, matching his dumbfounded tone. Adrien winced, he was hoping she wouldn’t bring it up again.

“I can't control my dreams!” he replied.

“Either way, it makes me uncomfortable that you’re texting a girl who you’re having dreams about!” she hissed “it makes me even more uncomfortable that those dreams are very likely romantic!” she added.

“Kagami! She’s my friend!” He reasoned “I can’t just not talk to my friend” he proposed, but judging by the look on her face, this wasn’t a great answer.

“Friend?!” She asked angrily “You haven’t talked to her in a year! How is she your friend?” she yelled rhetorically “Yet now you tell her that you love her in your dreams and she’s suddenly your best friend?” she asked, her arms folding over her chest.

“I am allowed to reconnect with my old friends!” Adrien barked “and you have no right to tell me otherwise!” he hissed, an accusatory finger pointed at his girlfriend.

“No right?” She asked “I have every right!” she suggested “As your  _ girlfriend,  _ I have every right to say that you can’t reconnect with a girl who you said you loved while sleeping!” she spat. Adrien groaned in protest, anger in his system.

“Kagami! That was a dream! How am I supposed to control my dreams?” he asked, anger soaring through his body. Kagami’s eyes narrowed as her teeth grinded together, her anger peaking as she thought steam would come from her ears. 

“Why do you even want to reconnect with her all of a sudden?” She asked. 

_ Adrien had no good answer.  _

“I… I’m not sure” Adrien responded “but I don't think it matters why I have been talking to her again recently” he stated. 

_ That was a mistake. _

“Talking?” she asked “You’ve already been talking to her?” she asked, her tone becoming accusatory “Was she who you were talking to in the bathroom?” she asked “Or the other night at three in the morning?” she questioned, anger still very present in her tone. 

_ There it was. _

Adrien's mouth hung open, he had no idea that she had heard his calls with Marinette, but she had, and now he was left trying to figure out how to respond “Yes” he replied, deciding the truth was the only way out of this. 

“So you’ve been calling her in the middle of the night? When I’m sleeping right next to you?” She asked angrily “Why couldn’t these calls wait until morning” she interrogated, going on the offensive which left Adrien scrambling to find an answer.

“I’m not sure!” he responded, not sure if he was lying or not.

“Yes you are!” Kagami accused “You don't just call someone in the middle of the night unless you have clear intentions!” she stated. Adrien bit his lip, he only had a few moments to come up with an answer before she would accuse him of lying.

“I’ve been having dreams about her” he admitted.

“Dreams?” She asked “So what? That’s why you needed to call her? She was in your dream?” she asked. 

“She wasn’t just in my dream” he admitted “she  _ is  _ my dream” he whispered, falling down onto his bed while Kagami frowned and threw up her arms in anger. 

“What are they about?” she asked. Now it was Adrien’s turn to frown, he knew that he didn’t want to answer that question.

“I don't think I sho-” he was cut off.

“What. Are. They. About.” she demanded, no longer asking. She spoke through gritted teeth as she tried to avoid showing her anger in any other way. Adrien breathed in deeply before letting out a sigh, unless he wanted to leave, there was no way around the question.

“Me and Marinette being in love” He responded “I had one where I confessed my love for her, another where we were cuddling in my bed and a third where we were going out to dinner together” he whispered in explanation.

“Three dreams” She stated “Do they mean anything?” she asked. Adrien looked up to her, not sure how to respond, of course they meant something.

“No” he lied.

“How many times have you called her?” she asked, her face softening slightly.

“Just the two times” he replied “The first time she hung up on me after a minute… but the second time... we talked for a little while” he replied, hanging his head, forcing his eyes to his feet.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” She asked “why didn’t you say “Hey, I had a dream about Marinette, I’m going to call her later”, why did you have to do it in the middle of the night and why did you have to hide it from me?!” she asked, her eyes turning slightly glassy as she asked her questions.

“I don't know Kagami!” he yelped “I can’t answer any of those questions because I don't know the answer myself” he cried out. Kagami let out a sigh, turning from his view as she looked out his window with a stiff stance.

“If you had innocent intentions there would be no reason to hide it” she proposed. Adrien didn’t answer and instead sighed, he wasn’t even sure what his intentions were so there was no way he could know if they were innocent or not. 

“What if you saw a therapist?” She suggested stiffly.

“A therapist?” Adrien questioned, not very open to the idea of a therapist.

“Not a therapist, but like a dream therapist?” she clarified. “Someone who can at least help sort through what these dreams mean” she suggested “At least then you might know why she’s on your mind” she reasoned, a small amount of care breaking through the anger. 

“What about us?” He asked, running his hands through his hair.

“We’ll work through it I guess” Kagami replied “But I don't think you should speak with Marinette again” she stated flatly. 

“She’s my friend Kagami” Adrien pleaded. Then his vision shifted, now was definitely not the time to have another dream.

“He’s my friend Adrien” Marinette stated “You have nothing to worry about” she stated soothingly, trying to calm his nerves. 

“I just don't like him” Adrien responded flatly, trying not to raise his voice “he obviously likes you and I don't like the idea of you and him being alone together” he whispered shamefully, looking to the ground. It’s not that he didn’t trust her, but he didn’t trust Luka. Marinette pulled his chin up, making his eyes meet hers.

“Ok” She stated “I won't hang out with him alone anymore” she reasoned.

“That easily?” he asked, unsure of her answer.

“You are one thousand times more important to me than Luka” she stated as a fact “Plus he’s kind of weird and always brings his guitar with him” she said, scrunching up her nose “It gets annoying really quickly” Adrien smiled, hugging his girlfriend.

“I’m sorry for freaking out” he apologized, bringing her down on top of him. Marinette didn’t say anything towards his previous statement, she didn’t need to, he already knew he was forgiven “I love you Marinette, no matter what” Just as quickly as his dream started, it ended, leaving Adrien looking at Kagami.

“I’ll stop talking to her” he said sadly.

**That's the second chapter, as always comments are welcomed and appreciated!**


	3. Not A Rebound

**This chapter is a doozy, I hope you enjoy and hope to read some of your thoughts on this chapter.**

It had been one month, one month of stepping on eggshells with Kagami, one month of not speaking to Marinette, one month of talking to a therapist about his dreams, and one month of receiving no answers about his dreams. His therapist was nice, but told him that he can't tell him what they mean, only try and help him figure out what they mean, yet 31 days later and he had no idea what they meant, it didn’t help that the dreams were sporadic, sometimes happening as many as three times a day and sometimes only as little as once a week. Now he was on thin ice with Kagami and yet he had some unaddressed feelings towards the girl he was dreaming about, on one hand he hadn’t talked to her in awhile, but on the other his relationship seemed to become more and more unnatural by the second. Right now he was at school, watching a red headed boy look in Marinette’s direction nervously, and he would be lying if he said his blood wasn’t boiling, he knew the feeling was jealousy as the redhead obviously had a crush on Marinette. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, the past month was very well the hardest of his life, rivaling when he learned that his dad was hawkmoth. Surprisingly that wasn’t a hard revelation, in fact his father admitted to it, openly told the world that he was hawkmoth in hope of a lighter sentence. In the end he received what he wished, only a ten year sentence with a five year parole, mostly because no one was injured and he hadn’t actually caused any pain or suffering. That had happened about half a year ago, the Gabriel brand was sold away leaving Adrien living in a nice and expensive apartment that he loved dearly. Now he was battling with emotions, emotions for two girls, one who he loved deeply, and the other not so much. 

_ He hated fighting emotions. _

“So have you had any new dreams?” the therapist asked as he scribbled down on his pad, seemingly collecting his thoughts. Adrien stared at the diplomas lining the wall angrily.

“No” he stated sharply, his tone didn’t take a toll on his therapist, and why would it. His therapist was likely someone who could get shot in the heart and be perfectly fine. He was a brawny man, built like a tank while looking like a well maintained cowboy. His voice was like that of a young Clint Eastwood, while his hair was long and starting to grey, his beard covered his jaw in a mop of grey with a few strings of brown that refused to discolor. 

“What about revelations?” The therapist asked, writing a few sporadic words on his pad. 

“Revelations?” Adrien asked “How would I have any revelations when you can't help me with my problems?!” He barked, his anger and stress from the past few months building up and spilling out at the same time. The therapist pursed his lips and let out a breath, thinking about the best way to approach this, he hit his pad against his knee repeatedly as he thought.

“You know, whenever I get a new patient I write down a prediction for them” he stated “Usually after the first session I write down what I think they will end up taking away from their time with me” he added, looking Adrien in the eyes “And so far I’ve been dead on with you” he laughed “So I’m just waiting for you to take the final few steps to reach what  _ you  _ want” he said sternly. Adrien was taken aback, he had no clue as to what he could possibly mean by that.

“What do you mean?” Adrien asked.

“I mean that I can't tell you what to think, or tell you what these dreams mean, you have to do that yourself” he stated “No one know’s why we really dream, no one knows what  _ your  _ dream means, the only person that knows is the dreamer” he explained, still gently tapping his pad against his knee “So if I ask you, do you know what this dream means? What would you say?” he asked. 

“Well I don't know, and that’s the problem” Adrien replied “I’ve been going to these sessions for a month now, purely for my girlfriend and yet I still don't know why I’m doing this” he sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose with his palms.

“Let’s talk about your girlfriend” The therapist suggested “You say she pushed you into this?” he asked. 

“Kind of” Adrien responded “I said something in one of my dreams and we fought about it” he explained “She asked me not to speak to Marinette again” he sighed. 

“And how do you feel about that?” he asked, scribbling in his pad again.

“Angry, aggravated, pissed off” Adrien listed “I mean she’s my friend, and I  _ want  _ to see her” he explained.

“And how do you currently feel about Kagami?” he asked. Adrien’s face morphed, he wasn’t sure if he really wanted to reveal or talk about that “Remember Adrien, what you say, stays here, Kagami won't know” he said softly. Adrien breathed in deeply before releasing a long sigh, his breath running against his chin. 

“I’m pissed at her” he sighed “I mean it feels like our whole relationship has been about what she wants and not what I want” Adrien explained, looking up to the man for confirmation. 

“Go on” he urged, a content smile on his face. Adrien nodded, taking another moment to compose himself. 

“When I got these dreams I realized how much I wasn’t receiving what I wanted” he said sadly “I mean it feels like me and Kagami aren’t in love and are just good friends” he explained in exasperation “I mean to people on the street we probably look more like two strangers than two people who are supposed to be in love” he groaned, tugging at his hair slightly. 

“Do you love Kagami?” He asked carefully, testing the waters.

“I… I… I don't know” Adrien sighed, angrily digging his fingernails into the fleshy area of his knees.

“Do you want to be in love with Kagami?” he asked softly, knowing that Adrien was at a point where he would answer the question truthfully.

“I… I don't know” he whispered sadly. The therapist nodded a little, vigorously writing in his pad. He turned up to look at Adrien, deciding to speak again to try and relieve some of the tension that he was dealing with.

“Be honest with yourself Adrien” He suggested “Don't hide feelings because you’re afraid they might hurt someone” he stated “You need to think about yourself more often, about what  _ you  _ want, rather than thinking about what others want. So, today or anytime this next week I want you to do one thing that you want to do for yourself ” he said while standing up, motioning for Adrien to do the same, he walked out of the room, Adrien beside him “So, until our appointment next week I want you to be selfish, and do things you want to do” he said happily “other than that, go enjoy yourself, you are way too young to be stressing so much” he finished, giving him a kind smile. 

“Alright” Adrien said with a tired sigh. 

“Remember Adrien, you cannot control your feelings, you cannot choose to love someone and cannot choose not to love someone” The therapist explained before walking back into his office, Adrien groaned, one question on his mind.

_ What did he mean? _

**Adrien- Can we talk?**

‘Do what I want to do’ he thought to himself as he looked at his text, his arms leaning on his windowsill as he awaited a response, a breeze cooling off his warm face as he did so. He breathed in the air, feeling the start of what would be a cold winter.

**Marinette- Yeah**

He breathed in again, he was already on thin ice with Kagami, but right now he didn’t care, right now he wanted to talk to Marinette. 

**Adrien- Is it alright if I call you?**

He wanted to hear her voice, hear the soothing tone of her high pitched vocals coming through his phone speaker. Kagami was someplace or the other, but all he knew was that she wasn’t currently here, that she was somewhere outside of his home. 

“Calling your lady friend?” Plagg asked, floating around his head.

“No” He replied flatly “I’m calling Marinette” he stated.

“That’s what I meant” Plagg clarified “You seem much more keen on Marinette than Kagami lately” he suggested.

“Plagg, there’s camembert in the kitchen” Adrien said, annoyed by his revelations.

“I’m just saying that if you dated Marinette I wouldn’t have to stay in your ring for ninety percent of the day” he complained. Adrien’s ears perked up, processing the words that were just said.

“What do you mean?” he asked, quickly turning his head to view the small kwami. 

“Nevermind” Plagg groaned angrily, flying to the kitchen. 

**Marinette- sure**

The words Plagg had stated were not lost on him, but he didn’t assume much about them, after all it could mean a million different things, and right now he wasn’t trying to think too hard about anything. He shook his head, forcing thoughts out of his mind as he hovered over Marinette’s contact, he hit call, not feeling a tinge of regret anywhere in his body. 

“Hey” He said happily, he breathed in, a smile lining his face as he spoke into the phone.

“Hey” She replied “What’s up?” she asked, a joyous tone breaking through the phone's speaker. 

“Nothing really” He replied “I just wanted to talk to you” he stated, leaning back against his windowsill. 

“And what did you want to talk to me about?” She asked. Adrien thought for a moment, trying to figure out what to respond with. 

“Hmmm” Adrien started “I’m not so sure” he responded, his smile still visibly present on his face as he spoke to his friend. 

“So you called me to talk to me? When you have nothing you wanted to talk about?” She asked. 

“Yeah pretty much” he responded happily “I realized that I hadn’t woken you up with any late night phone calls, so I decided an early afternoon one would have to suffice” he stated jokingly.

“I was wondering why I hadn’t been rudely awakened by my ringtone lately” She commented, a hint of teasing coming off her voice.

“I don't know whether to apologize or say your welcome” Adrien stated, noting that his tone was likely a bit more “cheery” than he would like. 

“Mmmm” Marinette hummed “I think it’s a little bit of both” Marinette explained “You called me randomly in the middle of the night, making me think that you were about to be murdered, and then it’s radio silence for a month” she explained, her tone slightly hurt. Adrien sighed, he should have known that his absence wouldn’t go unnoticed. 

“Sorry” He breathed, his tone breathy and light. “I don’t really have a great excuse” he explained “I should’ve stayed in contact” he said firmly, to himself more than Marinette. “Not just this last few weeks, but a year ago too” he stated sadly “We may not have been close, but you were still one of my closet friends back then, I should have valued what we had more” he finished, his throat producing a lump that inhibited his breathing greatly.

“Adrien” Marinette said softly “A phone has two lines, I could have texted you or called you all through that time” she explained “People drift apart, it’s kind of what happens” she added, her tone still soft and caring. 

“I know” He whispered “But either way, you didn’t know our friendship meant so much to me, so I should have strived more to preserve it” he said, his hand gesturing out in front of him to no one. They were both quiet for a while, not sure what to say or how to approach each other at that moment. 

“Maybe we can just focus on the future?” Marinette asked hopefully.

“Future?” Adrien asked, not sure what she meant.

“Yeah, be friends again?” She asked, her tone light and hopeful. 

“Friends” Adrien agreed, yet the words stung his mouth as if they were acid. Something about it felt off, like he wished he had said something else in that small period where he said “friends”. The question prominent in his mind was a big one, one that he would think about the rest of his conversation with Marinette.

_ What else did he want to be with Marinette? _

Marinette and Adrien ended up speaking for a few hours, talking about everything that had happened since they stopped talking, including Adrien letting it drop that he had been seeing a therapist at Kagami's request. Marinette had chosen to not ask or comment about that, knowing that his relationship was not hers to comment on. The call ended a few moments before Kagami entered his apartment, both of them were still stiff around each other. 

“Hey” Kagami said, giving him a small wave.

“Hi” Adrien said curtly, his enjoyment of the previous conversation with Marinette all but gone.

“How was therapy?” She asked, closing his door behind her. 

“It happened” he explained “I don't really understand why I’m going to therapy over a dream” he complained, turning and looking over Paris, remembering a simpler time when he was dreaming of the freedom he had now. 

“Adrien” Kagami sighed, ditching what she was going to previously say “Has it been at least helping?” she asked, approaching him.

“A little” he replied “but not for a dream I had a month ago” he stated, another breeze blew through the window, there was a storm coming. He could see the dark clouds approaching, in just a few moments they’d be directly overhead, unleashing their storage of rain on top of them. He felt Kagami pull him to face her, she had a small smile on her face as she looked up to him, then she leaned up and kissed him. It was short, really short, only lasting less than a second before she pulled back. 

“I love you” She stated, meeting his eyes. Adrien was frankly shocked, he definitely didn’t expect her to say  _ that _ , in fact they hadn’t said  _ that  _ in a long time. In fact they hadn’t kissed in a long time, confusing him all the more. 

“I… love you too” he responded, the words stinging and drying out his mouth like he had just tried to eat cinnamon 

_ He never knew that lying could physically hurt. _

“I need to go” Adrien stated.

“What?” Kagami asked, obviously confused.

“I need to go!” Adrien yelped, trying to move away from Kagami, his attempt was unsuccessful as Kagami grabbed his wrist.

“What do you mean you have to go?” She asked, starting to get upset.

“I just need to get some air” he stated firmly, trying to tear away his wrist. 

“Adrien, you can’t just be all cryptic and leave” she stated.

“Yes I can!” he yelped “I just need air!” he demanded. 

“Adrien, you cant just leave!” Kagami yelled. 

“I need to!” Adrien yelled in response, feeling his eyes sting. 

“No you don't! Talk to me!” She begged, but her tone came out angrily. Adrien felt a tear slip down his cheek.

_ He couldn’t do this any longer. _

“No” He stated calmly “I need to go” he added.

“Adrien!” Kagami yelled, upset at what he was saying.

“Kagami!” Adrien yelled back, not really responding. 

“You can’t just leave!” She demanded angrily, her anger overturning any begging or sympathy leaving her body.

“Yes I can” He growled, ripping his wrist out of her hand as he stomped to the door, putting slippers on.

“Adrie-” 

_ The door slammed behind him. _

Adrien practically ran out of his apartment, right now he felt like his mouth was on fire, he ran outside and was suddenly very upset that he didn't bring an umbrella. There was a torrential downpour outside and here he was in slippers with just a T-shirt and shorts on. 

“I can't go back up there” he reasoned, instead stepping out into the rain, immediately being soaked. He hadn’t thought the rain would come so fast, he had thought that it would at least be a few hours, and yet here he was. He trudged along, his slippers squishing beneath his cold feet as the rain pounded against him, freezing and large pellets of water berating his body. It felt like he was walking forever, receiving odd stares from numerous people who were confused by the boy walking in the rain. 

“Adrien?” A familiar voice called out, he decided to ignore it, not recognizing the voice. “Adrien!” the voice called again, that time he recognized it, it was Marinette. He turned, glassy eyed and soaked to the bone, there was Marinette, standing behind him walking under a large umbrella. “Are you ok? What are you doing out here?” she asked, walking up to him and extending the umbrella over his soaked and cold form. 

“I… I uh… wanted to go for a walk?” he questioned his own answer. 

“In the pouring rain?” she asked, stepping a bit closer so they were completely covered. 

“Y-yeah” he shivered, the cold finally breaching into his senses. 

“Come on, I’ll walk you home” she suggested.

“No!” Adrien yelped, taking Marinette by surprise “I can't go home” he responded in an apologetic tone. 

“Alright” Marinette said softly “It’s alright” she stated, noting the way his eyes were wet and glassy, on the brink of tears “Why don’t you come home with me?” she suggested. 

“I can't impo-” he started, being quickly cut off by Marinette.

“Don't you say it” she barked “I’m not letting you stay out here in the cold” she added “Come on, you can take a warm bath and sleep on my chaise lounger if you want” she suggested, giving him a kind smile, Adrien still looked to the ground, unsure “please?” she asked.

_ That sealed it. _

He couldn’t say no to her, in fact he wasn’t able to, he looked up and found her kind smile mixed with her relaxed body position. 

“Ok” He replied, nodding his head. Marinette breathed in “Come on, lets get you inside” she requested, guiding him towards her house. 

It only took a few moments before they reached her house, the bakery filled up with people escaping the rain and buying pastries. She gave a small hello to her parents, explaining the situation before pushing Adrien up the stairs. He had only ever seen her house once before, and it was rather brief too, but he definitely appreciated how nice and warm it was. 

“The bathroom is right here” she stated, opening the door revealing a pastel purple colored bathroom “I think a bath might be better for you” she explained, figuring that it might warm him a little more. 

“Thank you” he breathed, then his vision turned for a second. 

“Mmmmm” Marinette hummed, leaning her head against Adriens chest, her wet hair clinging to Adriens bare skin. 

“Enjoying yourself princess?” he asked, wrapping his arms around her bare waist as they lounged in the large bathtub together, the warm water feeling even warmer between their body heat. 

“Mmmmm” she hummed in agreement, looking up and kissing him on his jawline. 

“Did you enjoy our wedding?” he asked, looking at Marinette’s engagement ring, placed on their bathroom vanity in its velvet box, his eyes shifted to her finger where a tasteful and simplistic golden wedding band on her left index finger. He looked to his own index finger and found the same ring on his own finger. 

“I definitely liked it” she stated happily “I must say that my groom wasn’t too shabby either, so that made it easier” she explained with a smug smile. Adrien joined her in smiling, hugging her tightly. 

“You were a beautiful bride” he said, his vision shifting again. 

“Adrien?” Marinette asked “are you alright? You spaced out there” she explained.

“Yeah” he breathed, feeling a smile brush onto his face, that was likely his favorite dream yet “Sorry” he apologized.

“Its fine” She waved his odd space out off “I’ll go get you some clothes” she said, walking off. Adrien smiled and followed her with his eyes, he turned into the bathroom and closed the door behind him, turning the bath on. He climbed in and shut off the water, thinking about his dreams, there was no particular order to them, they came at all different points in their relationship. Yet they were all happy, even in the sad ones where they dealt with troubles and hardships, they did it together. He breathed in and out deeply, the steam warming his freezing skin, as of now he was happy, relaxed. His phone was in his apartment, where Kagami was, he would need to deal with that later, but right now he wasn’t going to think about it. He heard a knock on the door. “I have your clothes” she stated, carefully opening the door a smidge and nudging them into the bathroom.

“Thank you Marinette”

Marinette was sitting in her room, idly sketching, she had given Adrien a few items she had made herself along with boxers she bought herself for pure comfort reasons. Now she waited and wondered what had happened, it wasn’t his father since he was in prison which left her believing that it had to do with Kagami. They had spoken just an hour ago and he had seemed a little bit upset with Kagami so it was very likely that they had a fight. 

“How do I look?” Adrien asked, entering her room. She turned and smiled, the clothes fit well on him, a little tight in some places, but then again she just made them one day so it worked. 

“You look good” she stated, she stood up and circled him “It definitely could be looser around your chest” she commented, pulling at the fabric from the side. 

“It’s very comfortable” he responded. 

“The pajamas are a little tight in the thighs” she commented.

“You didn’t design them for me” Adrien commented, gripping her shoulders. Marinette looked up, meeting his eyes with her large blue ones.

_ Adrien was done for. _

He couldn’t handle it anymore, he needed to do this, he needed to be with her, he had been so stupid. How had he been so blind to this girl, this beautiful amazing girl, he needed her, he loved her. He felt his eyes sting with the threat of tears for what seemed like the hundredth time, this time they stung for the fact he finally realized. So he took her shoulders and pulled her into him, kissing her passionately. 

“Mmmgpgnsj” Marinette mumbled, pushing herself off of him. “Kagami” she whispered, a blush heavy on her face.

“We broke up” Adrien lied, his lie stinging his heart deeply, but he needed to lie, he couldn’t handle the possibility of being away from Marinette for another single second. He leaned in again and kissed her, his hand on the small of her back as he moved his body flush with hers, him leaning down to dissipate the height difference between them. 

“Adrien” she mumbled, separating their kiss again “I can't be a rebound” she whimpered sadly, expecting him to move.

“You’re not my rebound” He stated honestly “You’re my soulmate"

**I'm honestly hoping people comment, because I really want to know what people think about what was shown in this chapter.**


	4. Mistakes

**_Adrien's first mistake was waking up_ **

“Mmmmmgmfjf” Marinette hummed in protest as her pillow tried to escape.

“Well good morning to you too” Adrien smirked, looking at the girl who was nuzzling into his chest. 

“Mmmmm” She hummed, a small smile forming on her face as she realized that her pillow was actually Adrien “Where are you going?” She asked, her eyes fluttering open as she looked at the arm that ended somewhere on her back. 

“I need to get back home” he responded sweetly, a smile visibly present on his face. 

“No” Marinette responded “You can stay” she said tiredly, sitting up a little only to realize she was sitting on his lap “This isn’t my bed” she commented, looking around. 

“You’re right” he replied with a small laugh, pressing her head against his chest with his hand “we’re on your lounger” he responded “We were cuddling last night and you fell asleep” he explained, running a hand down her long hair “I must say, you were very cute when you were passed out on top of me” he said with a giggle. Marinette couldn’t help but smile at his words, hiding the smile in the cloth of his shirt. “I really do need to go” he responded “I have something I need to do” he explained. Marinette was obviously none too happy to have her pillow abandoning her early in the morning, but she obliged. 

“Alright” She whispered. Adrien picked her up, only receiving a squeak in protest as he did so “Why don't you get some rest” he suggested, placing her on top of her bed. She nodded in response, closing her eyes again, Adrien savored the moment as much as he possibly could, praying that he would see this sight once again. He took the extra moment to look at her, exhausted form looking tiny and carefree, he loved it so much, and loved everything about the way she looked.

_ He loved her.  _

It was true, he did and he couldn’t do anything to avoid that, this is what true love felt like, and he was sure that if he said “I love you” his mouth would feel great, in fact he was sure that he could and would yell it off rooftops soon. This was what he wanted, this is where he wanted to be, he wanted to be with Marinette, he wanted to travel the world with her in his arms. 

_ So it killed him all the more knowing that he screwed up so badly. _

He lied to her, told her that he and Kagami had broken up, that lie sat in the pit of his stomach like a burning fire while simultaneously feeling like a frozen chunk of ice. 

_ He made her the other woman.  _

Except she wasn’t, she was the only woman, the only person for him, she was his soulmate and he cursed himself out knowing that he didn’t realize that a year ago, two years ago, he wished he realized when he was four and could spend the entirety of his life with her. 

_ Yet no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t turn back time. _

The walk to his apartment was filled with dread, unease and uncomfort filling his stomach as he walked through the drizzly morning. His slippers were still wet and uncomfortable on his feet, the fur lining matted down and releasing water as he stepped, yet there it was, the apartment he loved was now a place he wanted nothing to do with. But he had to go in, he had to face the music. 

_ Face Kagami. _

That had to be the worst part of approaching the building, knowing that his  _ girlfriend  _ was very likely in his apartment at the moment, but that’s now what he hated. He hated that he lied to Marinette, told her that he broke up with Kagami. It wasn’t a complete lie, he had emotionally broken up with her long ago, called it quits with her long before he even knew he had, but it seemed like a moot point, in fact it sounded like the worst excuse he could find. He let out one last sigh, looking up at the apartment building, it was nice, large and a cream in color, but right now it looked like the underworld itself. He stepped into the building and walked to the elevator, for once it felt like the elevator was actively waiting for him at the lobby, not only that, but he was also completely alone, at this time it was usually numerous people leaving for work or getting their mail after breakfast.

_ Not today. _

Instead of the bustle it seemed like everyone had decided to sleep in this Sunday morning, choosing to stay in their apartments. The elevator doors opened, here he was, the topmost floor, this one was empty, he bought out this floor for privacy. So all there was left was to open the single door, one single door on the floor to his overly large apartment. His hands were shaky and his breath was shallow, he unlocked his door and opened it, there she was. 

_ Kagami. _

She sat on his couch facing the large floor to ceiling windows in front of it, she was leaning down, her elbows on her knees as her fingers tangled together in the middle. Adrien breathed in silently, a breath that fully expanded his lungs, the door closed, it was just them now. 

“Where did you stay last night?” Kagami asked, not taking her eyes from in front of herself. 

“It doesn’t matter much” He responded.

_ He lied. _

Not completely, it didn't matter much where he stayed, but the person he was with mattered so much that it couldn’t be overlooked. 

“Where did you stay?” she asked again, her voice muffled from a hand that dragged across her jaw. 

“A friend” he explained, setting his keys down in his catch all. 

“That’s funny” She said, a bitter and upset tone coming off of her voice “I called Nino and he said he hadn’t seen you that night” she spoke, a sigh escaping the last syllables of her words. Adrien felt his mouth turn downwards, he started walking towards her, his bare feet making a small patter as he did so. 

“I have other friends” He stated, finally seeing her face. It was upset, wet and red, eyes that were puffy while her hands shook uncontrollably in front of her. Maybe it wasn’t a face of being upset or sad, no this face seemed different. 

_ Desperation _

_ Fury _

_ Love. _

“Who. Did. You. Stay. With” she demanded, her voice sharp and painful. Adrien flopped down onto a chair of his, his back falling into the cushion while one ankle fell onto the other knee. He was determined to stay relaxed, composed. 

“It seems like you already know” he suggested, not sure if he was right or not. 

“Tell me” she requested, her eyes meeting his as she asked. 

“Marinette” he responded “She found me in the rain and told me that I could stay with her” he explained softly.

“You called her too” She stated factually. 

“You searched my phone” He responded flatly. 

“I thought we agreed you weren’t going to talk to her” Kagami spat, her voice fiery and angry. 

“You demanded that I didn’t talk to her” Adrien responded, controlling his own anger as best he can “You yelled and screamed until I had to agree not to talk to her” he suggested. 

“I had to!” She responded “How did you think I felt when I knew you were hiding away in the middle of the night talking to her!” she screamed “And now I find out that you called her again! And you also stayed at her house last night? How do you think that makes me feel?!” she asked, tears building in her eyes and rolling off her cheeks. 

“I don't know” He responded “But I do know what it’s like to be forced to stray away from a friend, purely because someone asked you to” he yelped. 

“That’s unfair Adrien!” She barked “You were talking to her in the middle of the night! You were hiding away in the bathroom and talking to her! Do you know how that sounds?” she asked “What about when I went through your phone and found that you had called her, and then stayed with her that night?” she asked. Adrien's blood was boiling, his heart racing, he was angry and upset. 

“Well how does it feel to know that I kissed her?” He asked

**_Adrien's second mistake was telling Kagami._ **

That was obvious, it was a moment of anger and stupidity, he should have left Marinette completely out of it and ended things right when he entered his apartment. He found his eyes stinging, this was bad, he had made a serious mistake in what he just said and his wince proved it.

“You kissed her?” She asked, completely shocked. Adrien breathed, he needed to think out his next moves, be careful of what he said “You kissed her?!” She yelped. 

“Yes” Adrien responded, looking away from Kagami.

“You kissed her” she stated for the third time, a little more of a calmer tone “You kissed her once” she said, standing up. 

“Much more than once” He responded, looking out the window to the early morning Paris skyline. 

“How many times?” Kagami asked, forcing herself to stare Adrien down with her eyes, trying to figure out just exactly what was going through his head. 

“I lost count” He whispered to himself, trying to think of every moment that he shared with her, moment’s when her lips touched his, the amazing feeling of holding her while she pressed her lips against his. He heard Kagami’s shaky breaths, her mind desperately trying to solve the problem, figure out her next move. He had seen her do it numerous times before, and yet here she was now, desperately trying to figure out what to do.

“It’s ok” she stated.

_ Wait. _

That’s not at all what Adrien expected to hear. No, he thought he would hear a “We’re over” Or “never talk to me again” which was the opposite of what he received. 

“We can work it through, go to a couples therapist” she suggested “It’ll be hard, but we can definitely do it” she explained “We can work it out, alright?” She asked, turning to him with hopeful eyes. 

“No” He whispered “We can't” he replied

“What do you mean?” She asked, despair in her eyes once again. 

“I can't work things out with you!” Adrien yelled, standing up as he did so “I can’t work things out with someone who I don't love” he whispered. 

“Adrien” she stated, her voice cracking. 

“I love Marinette” He whispered. 

**_Adrien's third mistake was telling Kagami that he loved Marinette._ **

“You love Marinette?” She asked “How? How can you love her?” She asked, her tears fully falling down her face, making small puddles on the ground. 

“I don't know Kagami!” Adrien called back “But I do! I probably always have! I just didn’t notice!” he yelped back, feeling his own eyes sting with tears. 

“Adrien” Kagami pleaded “I was the one who was covering for you when you had to fight akumas, I was telling people why you were nowhere to be found, I was with you when your father was arrested, I was there with you when you couldn’t sleep because of what your father did! That was me!” she begged, her tone was begging, she was trying anything to make him realize how deep her love ran, she knelt down in front of him, her eyes pleading “Let’s make this work” she begged, a smile on her face as she grabbed his hand in her own “We can make this work” she pleaded “Please” she begged “I love you more than you know, and I know we can make this work” she pleaded “let’s make this work, together” she suggested, a hopeful smile on her face. Adrien's lower jaw quivered, he looked away, taking his hand with him, Adrien looked at Kagami, he was always terrible at saying no to people. 

“ok” he whispered.

**_Adrien's final mistake was a big one._ **

**I won't lie, I couldn’t even proofread this chapter. So if there are any mistakes just tell me because I can not reread this chapter.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so very sorry!


	5. Do You Want To Give It All Up

**First and foremost, I am sorry for what I did in the last chapter, but other than that I did think it was a well written, albeit short, chapter. This one is going to be a little more upbeat and overall the series is going to have much less angst now than it did in the first few chapters. Hope you enjoy, as always comments are always welcome. And I think we can all agree that the therapist is us while watching the original series.**

“So you are staying with Kagami?” The therapist questioned. 

“I don't know” Adrien responded.

“And where does Marinette land in all of this?” he asked. His tone was brief and short, he was definitely unhappy with what he had been told. 

“I don't know” he responded, exasperation freely flowing in his voice. 

“So you know nothing?” the old man asked “You don't know if you’re staying with Kagami, nor if you’re going to Marinette, so what do you know?” he asked, his pad aggressively tapping his knee. 

“I don't know!” Adrien responded angrily, he couldn’t sit anymore, he had to get up and move. So he did, he stood up and looked around the room, his vision focusing on the pictures that lined the walls. 

“Which do you love?” He asked.

“I. Dont. Know!” He yelled, turning to face him with teary eyes. 

“But you do!” the man replied “You do know! In your heart you know that there is a right choice and a wrong one!” he barked “So which one is the right one and which one is the wrong one?” he asked, his pad long discarded on the floor. 

“I don't know!” He cried, wiping away his tears from his face “I have a year and some change built with Kagami! How can I throw that all away?” he asked “For a girl who I’ve had a few dreams about? A girl who I don't have anything built with?” he questioned “How am I supposed to throw everything away for her?” he sighed, not asking a question or wanting an answer. 

“Adrien, no one is asking you to throw it all away for her” he responded “But we are asking you if you  _ want _ to throw it all away for her” he stated calmly. 

“What do you mean?” Adrien asked, trying to compose himself. 

“I mean that you know which girl you want to be with, but you don't want to admit it to yourself” he explained, his tone soft and light “somewhere deep in your brain, there’s this part that for some reason is trying to block out all this possible happiness, it’s trying to stop you from being happy” he stated kindly “So who do you want to be with Adrien?” he asked, his journal calmly set aside while he waited for an answer “and Adrien, you came barging into my office when you didn’t have an appointment, I expect an answer” he clarified, trying to close off any way that Adrien might be able to weasel out of the conversation. 

“I have a year with Kagami, so I guess I should stay with her” he stated, running his hand through his hair.

“I know you have a year with Kagami, but right now, who do you want to hold in your arms? Who do you want to kiss? Who do you want to spend the rest of your days with?” he asked, there it was, that was all he needed, for once that meeting Adrien looked up and found a clear and decisive answer. 

Kagami sighed, looked up and found that Adrien still had a decent bit of time in his therapy session, she had something she needed to do. She breathed in and out deeply, desperately trying to calm her nerves. Her sneakers made a slight repetitive slapping nose as they calmly hit the pavement below her, she was headed towards the Dupain-Cheng bakery.

_ She needed to set this straight.  _

Marinette was a danger to her relationship, and she was going to end that danger, set the facts straight and inform Marinette that she was getting in the middle of something that was strong and steady going. She had rocked a steady boat, and it would right itself, it always would, because she had built something with Adrien, built something bigger than most would understand. She had equity with Adrien, a severely undervalued asset in a relationship, but with equity she was steady. Her and Adrien were steady, they were Paris’ trademark couple at that point, a couple that was regularly reported on in tabloids and they were loved. 

_ They were adored. _

Adoration was something that Kagami had to admit that she loved, as the daughter of an olympic fencer the spotlight was never really on her. Many people believed that after the olympics you were well know and remembered, but the fact was that no one can remember an olympian who wasn’t absolutely dominant, everyone remembers Micheal Phelps or Usain Bolt, but no one remembers Tomoe Tsurugi. Unlike Adrien, Kagami wasn’t world known or publicly loved, in fact she slipped under the radar until she started to date Adrien, then she became the girl to capture the biggest bachelor in Paris. She did love Adrien, she loved him more than most would know, loved him with her whole heart. Which is why she was going to protect that at all costs, she was going to protect their love with everything she had, so here she was, prepared to fight for that. 

_ The first step was to put Marinette in her place.  _

“Marinette” he whispered “I want to be with Marinette!” he yelped, jumping up in happiness.

“Finally!” the therapist chanted “I’ve been waiting an entire month to hear that” he cheered. Adrien turned and looked at him with a shocked face.

“You knew this entire time?” Adrien asked, surprised from the revelation. 

“Of course I did, I knew within the first day that you loved her” he explained “I mean you did come into therapy because you had been having dreams about this girl, it also helped that you said you loved her in your sleep” he suggested “Usually that’s a pretty good sign that you love someone” he said with a small chuckle. Adrien smirked, he knew that he loved Marinette, but to know that he actively wanted to be with her was something different, it was something greater. He know figured out that Marinette was the girl he wanted to spend the remainder of his life with, now all he had to do was end things with Kagami. 

_ Easier said than done. _

“What do I do now?” Adrien asked, looking around, he didn’t want to be rude and run out of the meeting.

“It’s alright Adrien” The man stated “Go ahead and do this the way you know it should be done, and then be happy” he added “I’ll be in touch” he stated as he waved the boy off. That was all Adrien needed, he bolted out of the room and started running to his apartment, he never thought he would say this, but he was actually excited to end things with Kagami. Purely because he wanted to start things with Marinette, and this time he wasn’t scared, wasn’t scared that he would end things with Kagami only to go into a week-long relationship with Marinette, because she was much more than that.

_ She meant much more than that. _

To him she was everything, she was perfect and it had taken him so long to realize it, yet now here he was, he was thankful he had realized it. Like many things, now that he knew, he couldn’t un-know, her face was stuck in his head. He ran into his apartment building, taking the stairs instead of dealing with the elevator. His breath was heavy and labored as he entered his floor, the floor with one doorway and one apartment, one giant apartment that was always cold.

_ Maybe it would start to be warm. _

He entered quickly, flattening his expression, except when he entered no one was there, his apartment was still and empty, no sound emerging from anywhere. At first he believed Kagami might’ve gone home, but he knew she wasn’t. He could feel it in his heart, she wasn’t home, nor was she here, leaving an endless list of possibilities. 

_ But there was really only one. _

Kagami always had an outward personality, she wasn’t afraid of going and confronting people if they messed up, she did that all the time while they were fencing. 

_ He knew where she was. _

It was easy to know, and it terrified him, terrified him more than any akuma he faced, more than the emptiness he knew when he learned his father was Hawkmoth, here he was, more terrified of Kagami than anything before. He breathed in one deep shaky breath, all the happiness that once filled his body was gone. 

_ He needed to get there first.  _

“CLAWS OUT!” he shouted, transforming himself into his superhero counterpart for what felt like the first time in forever. He jumped from the window and ran, he ran faster than he thought possible, he cleared the gaps in between buildings with a single bound. He forgot that he hadn’t transformed since his father, that was becoming severely clear right now.

_ After all, fitness is rented, not bought. _

His body now was well toned, but his muscles were gym made, not tailored fit like they were when he transformed daily. He was now striving to keep up with the pure demands of being transformed and it was definitely a tough challenge. Lucky for him he was only a few blocks away from Marinette's house when he was forced to drop transformation in an alleyway. Once again he was running, much slower than before but there it was, the bakery.

“Hi Mr and Mrs Dupain-Cheng” Kagami said sweetly “Is Marinette here?” She asked. 

“Oh yes, just go up to here room” they responded kindly, that was all she needed. She immediately walked up to the room that she knew as Marinettes, prepared to do what she had to. 

Adrien ran into the bakery, he ran past all the patrons, past her parents, straight up the stairs, skipping two steps at a time. He didn’t care that he was barging in, all he cared about was getting to Marinette first. He ran up the ladder and burst through the hatch to find Marinette alone.

_ He was on time. _

She was crying.

_ He was too late.  _

She looked over to him, her eyes puffy and red, it broke his heart, his lies unfolded on top of him, his mistakes were piling onto him all at once.

“Get out” she begged softly. 

“Marinette” he whispered “Please” he begged “Let me explain” he requested desperatly.

“Get out” she repeated, her voice getting sharper.

“Marinette” He repeated.

“Get out”

“Marinette”

“Get out” 

“Marinette!”

“Get out!”

“Ma-” 

“Adrien!” She yelled “Are you, as of this moment in time, still with Kagami?” she asked sternly, wiping away tears from his face. Adrien thought of a way out of this, and found him starting to form another lie in his head, they just came so easily to him. 

“Yes” he whispered “but I-” then he was cut off once again.

“But nothing Adrien!” she yelled “If you’re not broken up with Kagami, then there is no but!” she yelled, tears falling off her face. 

“Marinette it’s not just black and white like like” he pleaded “When I kissed you I meant what I said, me and Kagami may not have been broken up physically, but emotionally we were” he explained “and I meant it when I said that you were my soulmate, I know that much” he said truthfully. 

“Then why did you lie?” She asked, her voice soft and pained.

“I’m… I dont know” he whispered “I knew you wouldn’t keep kissing me if I told you I was still with Kagami” he admitted, looking up to her.

_ Betrayal. _

That was the look on her face, the face that made him believe in love at first sight, well not really first sight, but in reality it was first sight, the first time he looked at her, truly looked at her, he fell in love. Now that face was hurt, pained, and betrayed, he wanted nothing more than to hold her against his chest and whisper sweet lullabies in her ears. 

“You were right Adrien!” She yelped “Just leave” she suggested.

“Marinette! Please!” He asked “Can you please just listen to what I have to say?” he pleaded, holding out a hand to her, she turned away, but she didn’t yell at him to leave again so he assumed that was an invitation to continue. “When you found me in the rain, I was running away from Kagami, we fought and I planned on ending things with her because of my feelings for you” he stated “I had no intention to be with you that night, I planned to end things with Kagami first” he touched their fingers together, desperate for her contact “I know it sounds crazy Marinette, but I love you, and it has always been you” he gripped her tiny index finger in his entire hand “It just took me a month of having dreams about you in order to be able to realize that I love you” he whispered, trying to bring her closer to him.

“Adrien” she whispered back, leaving her finger in his hand “It doesn’t change the fact that you lied to me” she whimpered “I know what it’s like to be cheated on and I can't describe how much it sucks” she felt the tears in her eyes as she turned to Adrien. 

“You’ve been cheated on?” he asked, taking a step closer, testing the waters and his luck. 

“Luka” she whispered “I lied when I said that we never dated, we did” she explained “We broke up a few months ago” she whispered “he cheated on me because I was being distant” she let out a small whimper “Because I was still in love with you” she stated, yanking her finger back towards her own body, only to fell Adrien pull her into him with all his might, pressing her head against his chest. 

“It wasn’t your fault that he cheated on you” he whispered “he’s a douche for doing that” he winced right after he heard the words that left his mouth.

“Then what does that make you?!” Marinette yelped, her voice muffled in his chest “What does that make me?” she cried. 

“It makes me madly in love with the most amazing girl I’ve met” he said, one hundred percent sure of himself “I’m a douche, but I’m also a madly in love bastard” he said, then he heard it, the most beautiful noise he had ever heard in his life. 

_ Marinette’s laugh. _

Which was then preceded by the funniest noise he ever heard.

_ Marinette's snort.  _

He looked down at her, their eyes meeting, he wiped away the pained tears with his thumbs, leaving her previously wet face now dry, a small smile appearing. 

“I know I lied” he whispered “And I have no good excuse” he added “I will never forgive myself for doing that, but I promise you that I will never lie to you again” he assured, squeezing her tightly. 

“I dont…” Adriens heart stopped as he heard those two words “I’m not sure if I can do all of this just yet” she whispered. His heart resumed, it wasn’t a flat out rejection, but it also wasn’t an invitation to cuddle her while she peacefully slept on his chest as the sun rose.

_ So Adrien definitely had a few fantasies about that. _

“That’s fine” he whispered “I will wait for as long as you need” he added, gently running a hand down her back “Okay?” he asked kindly, giving her the most sincere smile she had seen in her life. She nodded, her hands moved from her sides to his chest as she gave him a small smile, none of the facts changed, Adrien still lied to her and made her the other woman. One fact helped with that, a fact that seemed to make all the bad things that had happened disappear, everything that had happened in her past, having Adrien date Kagami, getting cheated on by Luka and then having Adrien cheat on Kagami with her, it all disappeared, that fact was.

_ Love heals all wounds,  _

And now it was only Adrien and herself. 

_ Together. _

Adrien took the first step into his apartment and let out one long sigh, Kagami was already there sitting on the couch with the TV on. He was going to do this, he knew he wanted to be with Marinette more than anyone else, so if Kagami was going to get hurt.

_ Then so be it. _

“Kagami” Adrien whispered “I can't do this anymore” he stated. 

_ That turned her head.  _

She stared at him, surprised and slightly terrified by what he had said, especially since what they had just agreed on the day prior. 

“What do you mean?” she asked, her voice shaky. 

“I cant be with you anymore” he stated “I just… I’m not in love with you anymore” he admitted, his voice soft and regretful “I wish we didn’t have to end this way, but there’s nothing I can do about the way I feel” he said, hoping, praying, that she would just accept his explanation and leave.

“It’s her isn't it?!” she hissed

_ He was not that lucky.  _

“She’s why you’re saying this?” She asked, standing up “Adrien let me ask you this, was she there when your father was arrested?” Kagami asked angrily “was she there through all the bad times you faced this year?” she pleaded, desperately trying to cling on to their relationship. 

“Stop!” he demanded, his anger reaching a boiling point “Just stop!” he begged “You cant change my mind, I’ve decided who I want to be with, and you can't change that!” he said firmly while looking into Kagami's eyes. Eyes that were red and teary, eyes that seemed to be on the brink of implosion. 

“You want to give up what we have? What we built?” she asked “What about what we have?” she questioned “We worked for all of it! All of this!” she said, gesturing to everything around them. 

“Worked?” he laughed “I got all of this because my father was a no good scumbag!” he said angrily “It’s a bunch of junk that’s signified by its expensive price tag!” he said, taking a vase in his hands “This was three hundred dollars and yet I’ve never used it” he laughed again, dropping the vase which caused it to shatter into countless pieces “We haven’t worked for anything in our lives” he said with a smile “we’ve been handed the silver platter and we accepted it time and time again!” he chuckled before his face became flat “One year ago I went into this relationship thinking that it would work out purely because we had similar childhoods, because we had been treated poorly by our parents” he shook his head “I thought we would work out because we have had everything handed to us, so I thought that a relationship would be the same” he finished, running a hand through his hair again, as he walked around. Kagami shook her head, walking over and taking a large and meaningless glass blown sculpture in her hands. 

“Meaningless?” she asked “It’s not meaningless Adrien!” She yelled, throwing down the glass which shattered into a thousand pieces “We bought this stuff together! It’s symbolic!” She screamed, throwing down anything expensive and brittle that was in her line of sight “and so what if we were handed the silver platter?!” She asked “we still had to deal with the torment of parents who didn’t care for us”

“No” Adrien responded “We were lucky. we had the world and we thought nothing of it, and then we had each other and  _ I  _ thought nothing of it, and now I can only dream to have Marinette, pray that I can make her as happy as possible, because this time it's true love and not money” he barked “this time I’m not going into something because I feel it’s the right thing to do, I’m doing it because I know  _ she’s  _ the reason I will be happy for the rest of my life” Kagami looked like she wanted to murder him for what he just said. 

“That’s it?!” She yelled “A year of my life gone?” she asked, stomping off into the kitchen, she opened the cupboards and took out numerous plates “All that for nothing?!” she yelled, throwing a plate down on the ground from pure spite “You’re really going to give up everything for Marinette?!” she screamed, this plate flying in his general direction, he moved out of the way quickly, but his tv didn’t fare the same way “All the work we put in for nothing?!” She barked, shoveling out all the plates, mugs and cups from the cabinet, sending porcelain flying, each piece costing no less than a hundred dollars each. 

“Leave” Adrien demanded “Leave or I will call the police” he said calmly “And give me your key” he hissed. Kagami felt a few tears drip down her cheek as she pulled out her keys, unrolling a silver one from her split ring and chucking it in Adrien’s general direction. Without another word she left, walking out of his apartment and making sure to slam the door, yet Adrien couldn’t find himself to be angry or mad, he felt relieved. 

_ Happy. _


	6. The Tabloid

**Adrien- Are you awake?**

Adrien sighed, the likelihood of Marinette being awake at this time of night on a school night was slim to none, yet he was going to hold onto hope, he needed to talk to her.

_ Then his phone rang.  _

He hadn’t expected her to just call him, but he wasn’t going to oppose, he answered quickly, sitting on his bed as he looked over the Paris skyline that was shrouded in the inky blackness of the night. 

“Hey” Adrien said breathlessly. 

“Hey, is everything ok?” she asked before backtracking “I mean I would think that you would be asleep by now, it’s a school night and everything” she explained. 

“Yeah, I just can't sleep” he whispered “do you have time to talk?” he asked quietly. 

“Always” she responded, taking a breath in before she spoke agian “what do you want to talk about?” she asked, her voice kind and caring. 

“I’m just having a hard night” he explained, his voice slow and hiding any amount of pain.

“I’ll come over” she suggested. 

“Mari, no” Adrien responded “It’s late” he stated, even though the truth was he wanted her to come, he wanted her to be here so he could hug her tightly while talking about his problems. 

“Adrien” she sighed, obviously getting up as she did so “Do you want me there right now?” she asked. Adrien bit his lip, it was such a smart question, he couldn’t say no because he loved her and she knew that, he just couldn’t say no, so that left him with one answer.

“Yes bu-” he was quickly cut off. 

“There is no but Adrien” she stated “I’ll be there in a minute or two” Adrien knew one thing in that moment, something that was painfully obvious to him.

_ It was much nicer being on the other side of that statement.  _

“Are you alright?” a tired Marinette asked as the door opened to reveal a wide awake Adrien. 

“Y-yeah” he whispered. 

_ Marinette didn’t believe it for a second.  _

“Let’s talk about it” she requested with a smile. Adrien gave a weak smile in return as he walked over to his bed, sitting down on the floor in front of it, leaving Marinette to look around the apartment. It was easily the largest studio apartment she had ever seen, in fact it was giant. It also contained numerous glass shards and one TV with a shattered screen that was actively threatening to give someone a seizure, ignoring all of that she sat down right next to him with a smile “What’s going on?” she asked softly. 

“You didn’t have to come” Adrien whispered, looking down towards his hands to avoid eye contact with Marinette.

“And yet I did anyway” she responded with a weak and tired smile “I didn’t have to come, but you wanted me here, so I came” she explained kindly. 

“I know” he said with a sigh “but I woke you up and I don't know what’s wrong and I’m just freaking out and being all weird-” he started rambling, but was silenced by a small hand on his thigh. 

“Adrien” she whispered “Let’s just talk” she suggested kindly, running her hand up and down his thigh gently “How was your day?” she asked. Adrien felt his lips turn upwards in a small smile as he leaned back, his arms fanning out on his bed. 

“Kagami didn’t really take the breakup well” he explained “but I’m glad it’s just done with” he added “I should’ve ended it months ago, so i’m just really glad that it’s finally over” he sighed contently, looking over to Marinette who had her chin resting on her knees. 

“Mmmm” she hummed tiredly, Adrien smirked, he put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her into him. Somehow in a few moments she went from exhausted, but awake, to walking to tightrope and falling towards sleep. She didn’t protest the closeness, so he decided to keep steady, but that also meant he forgot to continue talking. 

“Just talk about whatever you want” she yawned “I’ll be listening” she explained, leaning into his shoulder. 

“Do you remember that time when you helped me run away from my bodyguard to get me to a movie that we didn’t even get to watch?” he asked.

From there they spoke about all the memories they shared as friends while Marinette peacefully leaned on Adriens shoulder, her eyes closed, but never asleep. 

“Do you want to talk about what was keeping you awake?” Marinette asked, placing her legs on top of Adriens her calves touching the top of his shins. 

“That’s the problem, I’m not sure” he explained “Sometimes there’s just so much going on my head that I can’t focus on anything which in turn causes me to focus on everything” he whimpered “and then when I do get to sleep I wake up in an empty apartment, I mean I’m eighteen and yet I don't know what it is to be truly loved” his voice broke at the end of his statement, it was early, way to early to try something new. 

“Hey” Marinette said softly “people love you” she said firmly “Nino loves you, Alya loves you, heck I think Chloe even loves you in some weird Chloe way” she said with a smirk, causing Adrien to smile a bit too “ _ I  _ love you” she whispered. Adrien’s heart fluttered, it was a simple phrase, after all it was grouped together with all of his friends, but it meant much more to Adrien.

_ It always would. _

“I like how you decorated” Marinette teased, looking at the shattered TV. 

“Hey, I did say that Kagami didn’t take the break up well” he responded, looking over at all the shattered vases and plates. 

“We’ll have to clean it” she murmured, letting out a yawn that ended with a tiny squeak from the depths of her throat. 

“Do you… you need to go right?” He asked, looking away from the girl peacefully resting on his shoulder. 

“I can stay” she whispered “Parents… away at convention” she explained as she phased in and out of sleep. 

“You don’t need to” he responded quietly. 

“Do you want me to?” she asked, her tired blue eyes peering at him from his shoulder, the usually bright and vibrant color dull with exhaustion. 

“It’s fin-” he started, trying to make an excuse. 

“Do you want me to stay tonight?” she asked, her eyes turning back to their very awake color. She saw that Adrien was still slightly hesitant, not wanting to inconvenience her in any way. “Adrien, we agreed that we’d ease into a relationship, right?” Marinette asked.

“Yeah” he whispered, knowing he would rather get married in a month than take it slow.

“So tell me, do you want me to stay the night?” she asked once again. 

“Yes” Adrien whispered “Can you stay?” he asked, more confident in himself. 

“Yes” Marinette responded “I’ll stay” she added “but I’m warning you, there's a high chance that I’ll end up sprawled out on top of you” she said with a small giggle.

“That sounds perfect” Adrien responded “let’s get you to bed” he requested as he looked up at his wall clock, noticing that it was approaching sunrise. He easily lifted her up and slid back on his bed, his favorite person curled up in his arms. Marinette fell asleep extremely quickly, using Adriens chest as a pillow, Adrien on the other hand  _ chose  _ not to sleep just yet. It felt amazing that he now had that choice, he could fall asleep at any point and he felt that, but he also saw the sky lightening in color. This is what he wanted, he wanted to watch the sun rise while he cuddled Marinette. Even though it wasn’t as romantic as he thought it would be, in fact it was a disgusting smoggy and foggy day that would signify rain coming in the late afternoon, but it was still perfect. Maybe one day he would share an actually beautiful sunrise with Marinette, one that was beautiful and vibrant with numerous shades of red and orange, but for right now he would settle. With that, he fell asleep, warmed by the large comforter and the small girl sprawled out on top of him. 

By the time Adrien woke up it was already late into the afternoon from what he could tell, it seemed like his body decided that it would try and catch up on all the sleep he had lost in the past month, it seemed to be even clearer that Marinette agreed with the decision. The rain was pelting his windows, a loud tapping coming from the sheets of glass in front of him, he turned to his alarm clock and found that he had slept completely through the first half of school and would be late if he scrambled to make it there before the end of lunch hour.

_ That is if he had tried. _

Marinette was passed out on top of him, and he would not be the reason she was woken up for a second time that day, he would also be lying if he said he wasn’t enjoying every second of having her curled up in his arms. But something decided to work against him that day, she stirred slightly, her eyes once again showing the dull blue of her exhaustion. 

“Morning” he said happily, fighting every urge to lean down and kiss her., instead he decided to 

“Morning” she whispered back rubbing her eyes a little, she too would be lying if she said she weren’t fighting the urge to kiss him, instead he gently kissed the top of her head, her hair tickling his lips.

“Sorry princess, it’s actually noon” he responded. Marinette looked at him, a large mixture of both shock and confusion painted on her face as she tried to process his sentence. 

“So many questions” she murmured “First of all, noon?” she questioned “And princess?” she asked “You’ve never called me princess” she added “And you said morning first” she accused “Did you just kiss the top of my head?” she questioned. 

“Ye-” he stopped when he realized that  _ he  _ had never called Marinette princess, his cat-like counterpart had been the one to call her princess. “Yeah, we slept through most of the day” he responded “I think princess fits you” he added with a smirk “And I’m sorry, would you prefer if I kissed you on the lips?” he questioned smugly, butterflies flying away in his stomach.

“Dork” she said softly, a large blush on her face. 

“Do you even want to try and rush to school before lunch hour ends? Or we can just pretend to both have been sick and take the day off?” he asked, favoring one idea over the other. 

“I have a feeling that seeing Kagami today wouldn’t be very beneficial for either of us” Marinette commented “so I’m taking the day off” she said with a shrug, removing herself from Adriens chest, much to his own dismay. “I’ll head back home now” she stated, starting to walk towards the door. 

“Wait!” Adrien called “It’s raining really hard, you could get sick?” he said, questioning himself more than suggesting something. 

“If I didn’t know any better I’d think that you wanted me to stay” she responded playfully, her eyes vibrant and teasing. 

“I do want you to stay” he responded truthfully, no falter in his voice. Marinette was slightly taken aback, she didn’t expect him to just come out and say she wanted to stay, after all Adrien didn’t have the best track record of getting what he wanted. “I mean I have extra clothes if you want to change and you can take a shower if you want, so… I would like you to stay” he said with a smile. 

“I’ll stay then” Marinette responded, matching her smile.

“Thank you” he responded, standing up “Do you want to take a shower?” he asked kindly. 

“Yeah” she smiled, looking up to meet Adriens eyes, and she could only think about one thing. 

_ Adrien was truly more amazing than she knew.  _

Alya held up a tabloid newspaper, one that revealed no actual news and would instead report on the newest of the alien sightings. This time however, there was no new alien sighting, in fact this seemed further from the truth while being the exact truth. 

**_Dream Teens of Paris Break up_ **

**_Kagami Tsurugi says he cheated_ **

**_Read more on page 3_ **

She looked from paper to paper and found that it was not only the tabloids, but the actual newspapers too. While it wasn’t front page news everywhere, they still had a blurb while others decided that it was certainly deserving of the front page. To say she was shocked was an understatement, in fact she was shocked enough to talk to the one person in the world who she absolutely despised. 

**Alya- Have you read the paper today?**

**Nino- No why?**

**Alya- Meet me at Adriens apartment.**

“I never really had a sleepover before” Adrien explained, sweeping up the final few shards of porcelain. 

“Really?” Marinette asked, picking up a stray fragment of a long gone vase “Let me tell you, they usually don't go this way” she said with a small laugh “usually it’s movies and junkfood, not cuddling and skipping school” she added. 

“Well that just takes all the fun out of it” Adrien sighed “If you don't get to cuddle with your crushes, then what's the point?” he groaned. Marinette felt her eyes roll slightly as a smile formed on her face. 

“Are you getting sassy with me?” Adrien teased, walking up to her. 

“Maybe” Marientte responded, placing a hand on her hip. Adrien shook his head slightly, closing the gap between them

“I think I like this side of you” he whispered, loving the large blush on her face that matched nicely with the shock on her face. Sadly their moment was suddenly ruined by numerous knocks erupted from his front door. 

“Adrien!” Alya called, rapidly pounding on his door. He quickly jogged to the door and found both Alya and Nino, a rare sight at any point in time, let alone at his apartment door. 

“What’s wrong?” He asked as he stepped aside, allowing them to step into their apartment. 

“Marinette?” Alya questioned growing a sly smile on her face. Nino grew an evil smirk on his own face and turned to Adrien. 

“Dude you totally hit that?” Nino questioned, only to get slapped across the head by Alya before Adrien could even manage to try. 

“Don't be a dick” Alya hissed angrily, turning back to Marinette who was heavily blushing. 

“Ouch” Nino winced, holding the back of his head. 

“Marinette came to help me clean up” Adrien responded, deciding to lie about her staying the night, also deciding to leave the hitting to Alya. 

“Either way, it’s probably better that you’re both here” Alya stated, holding a magazine out “Maybe we should sit down for this” she suggested, gesturing to the couch. Marinette and Adrien hesitantly sat down, feeling like parents whose kids were about to tell them that they broke something. “I was at the news stand, and I found this” Alya sighed, handing them the newspaper. Adrien was the first to read it, he shrugged slightly and passed it off to Marinette. 

“That’s not terrible” He sighed “I mean sure it’s not great, but it’s definitely not the worst thing I’ve had worse written about me” he added, shrugging off the article. 

“They didn’t write about you” Nino corrected, leaning his elbows against his knees. Marinette looked towards him too, she decided to flip to the article. 

“They wrote about me” She whispered, her eyes tearing up as her mind reread the article. He quickly snatched the magazine out of her hand and read it himself, trying to protect her from the undoubtedly harsh words, but it was too late, she had already read the entire thing. Nothing could’ve prepared Adrien for what was actually written in the tabloid.

_ “Me and Adrien had a strong heartfelt relationship built on trust and love, yet Marinette, my own classmate and one of my greatest and oldest friends, somehow broke down that foundation of love and trust and wiggled in between us. It scares me, because Adrien may not be able to see it, but it should be clear to everyone that an aspiring fashion designer and a model should be a match made in heaven, but to me I know it as a fashion designer trying to bring herself into the light by dating one of the most well known young models in today's day and age... I don't blame Adrien, Marinette was somehow able to twist and turn my words into something villainous. I think in the end I have to blame myself, mostly for not seeing it sooner, maybe if I had seen it sooner we wouldn’t be having this conversation” -Kagami Tsurugi _

_ Kagami was adamant about how she only wants the best for Adrien, which leaves the question of who this Marinette Dupain-Cheng is. We had our investigative team look into her and found that she was indeed an aspiring designer of multiple fronts. Her achievements for a seventeen year old are impressive, having designed a Jagged Stone album cover and a few more items for Jagged and his own band along with a few of his onstage (and offstage) friends. This still leaves the question of her intentions with Adrien, is it love, or is she trying to further her career thro- _

He couldn’t read anymore, he felt his heart break a little, he had lied to Marinette, betrayed her trust, made her cry and led her on for years, not realizing her feelings for him or his own for her, but this was the worst thing he had done to her. She had tears filling her eyes as she tried to blink them away, Adrien could tell that she was trying to swallow the lump in her throat. He started to reach out a hand towards her, but she flinched away. 

“I-I… I n-need a s-second” she whimpered, quickly standing up and running away into the bathroom. Adrien wanted to crumple away, he wanted to disappear and never be seen again, but that wasn’t an option, he needed to face the music.

_ He loved Marinette _

_ He would be there for her right now.  _

“Maybe you guys should go” Adrien suggested, standing up.

“She’s my best frie-” Alya started, being quickly cut off by Adrien.

“I should be the one” he responded, itching the back of his neck awkwardly “We might’ve agreed to… pursue... a relationship” he whispered, not looking towards his friends.

“Go ahead” Alya replied with a smile “Just so you know, I’ve been waiting to hear that for years” she added. 

“Yeah dude, you two have been a couple in the making for years” Nino started with a small clap of his hands “We’ll get out of your hair, good luck” he added with a smirk, starting to walk out the apartment, closely followed by Alya. He let out a deep breath and walked to the bathroom, his heart throbbing when he heard the tiniest of sobs on the other end. 

“Mari?” He asked, gently knocking on the door “Can you open the door for me?” he questioned calmly. He didn’t receive an answer, maybe for a multitude of reasons, but that wouldn’t deter him. “Marinette, please?” he begged, holding a hand on the door knob, it was unlocked, but he needed permission to enter, he couldn’t barge in. 

“It’s open” a weak voice called, carefully and slowly, he opened the door. Marinette was sitting against his counter, desperately trying to wipe away the tears. Adrien walked over and sat next to her, staying silent for a few moments.

“It’s really not that bad” he started “I mean it doesn’t really matter what a random tabloid reporter says” he added, placing a hand on her knee. 

“They think I’m with you because it will further my career” she whimpered, desperately trying to get the tears to stop. 

“Well it doesn’t matter what they think” Adrien replied quickly “It only matters what you think” he whispered, squeezing her knee. 

“I know, but  _ they  _ think that, and  _ they  _ printed that, so now all of Paris thinks that” she responded, a few sporadic tears falling off her face. 

“None of it matters” he whispered “It sucks and it’s going to be terrible for a really long time, but it won't matter” he added, moving in front of her “I  _ promise  _ you, I will figure it all out, so please, don't worry” he begged, taking her hands in his own. Suddenly, something was wrapped around him, and then he felt the most amazing feeling in the world. 

_ Marinette’s lips against his.  _

Her hands were tangled in his hair while she pushed their lips together happily, Adrien reached around her and pulled her close. He only separated to say one thing, the most important thing he could ever say. “I love you Marinette” he stated passionately “More than you could ever know” he added, picking her up off the ground. 

“I… I love you too” She murmured, an everlasting smile present on her face, her legs wrapped around him. 

“You’re my soulmate Marinette”

**As always, comments are welcome and appreciated.**


	7. Chapter 7

**So first and foremost, sorry for my absence, I'm working on like six different stories right now and I needed a bit of a break from this one, but I'll try and keep updates frequent.**

Adrien held Marinette in his arms, she cried gently, sobs breaking through her mouth as she desperately tried to calm herself. However, her attempts were useless as her tears instead just poured onto his shirt, wetting the fabric with the salty wet liquid. 

“Shhhh” Adrien cooed “it’s alright” he added, gently stroking her back with the tips of his fingers. He heard Marinette sniffle a few times, a few small and cute sniffles as she tried to avoid sobbing like a mad woman. “Can you tell me what's wrong?” he asked carefully, his tone softer than silk. 

“I’m moving” she whispered, unable to meet Adriens eyes. 

To say Adrien was shocked was a downplay, he was terrified in all honesty, he had just started dating Marinette, their relationship was less than a week old, and yet she was going to be ripped away from him without so much as a warning?

“What?” he choked out, finally feeling his mouth form words before the terror set in. Marinette was quick to offer an explanation.

“My parents got an offer for someone to franchise the bakery for them” she whispered “They want to buy them out and keep them working for the company that’s buying them” she whispered with a few hand movements as she explained the situation. 

Well that wasn’t a huge shock to Adrien, Tom and Sabines was one of the most popular bakeries in one of the most expensive areas of Paris, people were attempting to order their pastries from 50 miles away, and some people even asked to have them shipped across the globe. 

“Alright, so you’re moving” he stated calmly “What part of Paris?” he asked gently, because surely anyone buying out Tom and Sabines would be located in Paris “the  16th arrondissement?” He asked hopefully, that was right where his apartment was located, in fact that would likely mean that they wouldn’t even have to move across the Seine, or they could stay in their house if they really wanted.

“Further” she whispered. 

“14th?” he asked quietly, feeling he already knew that the answer was something far worse. 

“It’s not in Paris” she whispered, not daring to meet his eyes.

“That’s fine, where in France is it?” he asked, trying to keep up his gentle back scratches, knowing that his simple gesture meant the world to Marinette “Marseille? Bordeaux? Cannes? Lyon?” he listed off frantically, hoping that it was any one of them, he could live with having to travel a few hundred miles to see Marinette, heck that was only a few hours in a car, and less than an hour in a plane, he could do that every weekend and buy an apartment near them, heck had the money for it. 

“Italy” she murmured, taking comfort in his chest as she hid away from his gaze.

“Where is Italy France?” he asked, trying to sort out his thoughts “that can’t be that bad, at worst it's an hour or so flight” he suggested before wanting to slap himself in the face “Where in Italy?” he asked, feeling Marinette giggle slightly against him, at least he had managed in relieving the tension in her body. 

“Bologna” she stated, nuzzling into his chest. 

Adrien  _ almost  _ felt the humor in the name, but he also hated it, he had a few final modeling contracts that he needed to finish out, meaning that if Marinette left for Italy now, not only would he miss Marinette for the second half of their senior year, but possibly also even miss any long term visits with her for a bit over a year. 

“When do you leave?” he asked deflated, he had just gotten Marinette, just began dating her, just began to be able to express his love for her, and now she was being ripped away. 

“Never” she responded, obviously lying as she cuddled Adrien.

“Mari” he whispered, moving back on his bed “When do you leave” he asked again, leaning back into his upholstered headboard. 

“A week” she responded, feeling tears build in her eyes again “They want my parents to start work there right after winter break” she whispered, trying to keep an unwavering voice with Adrien. 

“How did this all happen so quickly?” he sighed, thinking about how much time he could squeeze out with Marinette, even if he got her to stay at his apartment for every night it meant that he would still only be able to get out a limited amount of time with the love of his life. 

“It didn’t” she replied, breathing in the scent of his cologne. “They got the offer a year ago and were in a weird process of saying they weren’t going to accept even though they both wanted to” she groaned, wrapping her arms around Adriens neck as she looked at him meaningfully. “I’m sorry, I begged, cried on my knees and slammed my door in their faces, but they’re pretty dead set on this” she whimpered, trying to access the warmth of his neck next as she nuzzled into the section of bare skin. 

“It’s alright Mari” he whispered, his mind already making a list of everything he could do to stop this. 

_ Buy the bakery himself _

_ Make sure their plane never takes off _

_ Run away with Marinette and never look back _

_ Have Marinette move in with him _

_ Convince Tom and Sabine to turn down a hefty check in order to stay in France _

He sighed, he would likely think of something better later down the road, he would find some way to figure this all out, make sure that Marinette could stay with her friends, make sure that he wouldn’t suffocate from loneliness. That’s what he would do, he would figure something out for the both of them, because whether he liked it or not, he needed Marinette here.

“Come on, there’s no way we’re spending this entire week sleeping with each other” she said with a smile, that was until she went bright red as she fully comprehended the words she had just said. 

“Are you sure?” Adrien smirked, giving her a small squeeze “You don't want to spend this week sleeping with me?” he asked with a small laugh, unable to control his amusement. 

“Jerk” she mumbled, unable to meet his eyes with her own. 

“Come on, let’s go get you something to eat” he requested, a small smile on his face, but it was a smile burdened by the pain and agony of an expiration date. 

He pulled her towards the elevator, hopeful that someway he would solve all these issues, because in the end that’s what he promised Marinette, he had promised that he would figure it all out, and he would. 

“So, where do you want to eat?” Adrien asked as the doors of the elevator popped open, only for the pair to be met with a sea of reporters and camera flashes that tried to break through the tinted glass of the modern lobby. 

“I forgot about them” Marinette whispered, looking at the reporters with fear “Why cant they just leave us alone?” She asked, looking up towards Adrien “I mean it’s not like we’re doing anything wrong” She reasoned. 

Adrien turned and met her eyes, giving her a small smile, the truth was the press didn’t care how invasive they were being, nor did they care about the feelings of the people whos privacy they were invading.

“I hate to say that I don't Marinette” he sighed, giving her hand a small and reassuring squeeze “Lets just order in”

“So, what are your parents going to be doing in Italy?” Adrien asked, looking at Marinette who was sitting cross legged on his couch, a position that he found to be totally adorable. 

“I think it has to do something with recipe development and that sort of stuff” Marinette stated, raising the chopsticks up to her mouth “They’ll be developing recipes for this companies line of products” she explained, with a shrug “and then the bakery will become a small franchise in a few major cities across Europe” Adrien nodded along, he couldn’t blame Tom and Sabine, that did sound like a fantastic deal, to have your bakery turn into a well known franchise while getting an amazingly paying job that allows you to do what you love all day in a country that neither of them had lived in. A country that was pretty much known as the capital of all food.

“I think they’ll enjoy it there” he stated, feeling a tinge of pain in his chest as he spoke again “You’ll enjoy it too” he added, giving her a small smile as he tried to accept the fact that they might be doing long distance or at worst breaking up. That would likely physically break Adrien, to have dated the girl of his dreams for a week, only to then have his heart ripped out because she was moving to another country.

“Well… I don't think I will” Marinette responded with a small pout “I mean we just got together Adrien… what happens next?” she asked, carefully speaking for fear of breaking their little bubble that was perfectly concealing them at the moment. 

“We’ll figure something out” He took her hand in his own and gave it a light squeeze, he gave her a small sympathetic smile “I told you that I would figure it all out, and trust me, I will figure all of it out, no matter what it takes” he promised, squeezing her hand once more, Marinette smiled as she set the fork back in the cardboard container with a generic Chinese house printed on it. 

“Alright” Marinette whispered, crawling over to Adrien and sitting between his legs, using his chest as her backrest “I trust you” she said, leaning her head back onto his chest before moving up and kissing the underside of his chin, he felt Adriens comforting arms wrap around her waist and press her into him.

“I’ll figure it all out” 

Adrien breathed in deeply and released it carefully, the bakery was dark, the curtains drawn in front of the large windows. It definitely didn’t help that all he could hear were camera shutters behind him, the over zealous camera flashes reflected off the windows and blinding him slightly, but none of it mattered, he had more important things to worry about. He did a quick adjustment to his suit jacket, wanting to come off as both casual and formal at the same time, then he walked into the closed bakery, quickly closing the door behind him. 

The bakery itself was very similar to how it was when open, except all the pastries and bread were missing, likely sold or given away as they closed down to pack and move. 

“Adrien?” a hearty voice called out, slightly startling Adrien as he looked around the dark room. 

“Monsieur Dupain-Cheng?” Adrien asked, looking around the bakery until he found Tom over by the ovens.

“Adrien, I thought I told you, Tom will do fine” Tom chuckled, stepping away from the ovens and flicking on a light “Sorry, sometimes the dark is nice” he said with a slightly sheepish tone. 

“Oh that’s alright Monsi-... Tom” he replied, walking over towards the baker “Are Sabine and Marinette here?” he asked carefully, knowing that Marinette wasn’t there at the moment.

“Sabines upstairs, but Marinette is at Alya’s” The man explained “Is there something we can do for you?” he asked, wiping his hands off on a dish rag. 

“There was something I was hoping to talk to you and Sabine about if you two have a moment” Adrien requested, straightening out his casual blazer once more, ecstatic that everything was falling into place nicely. 

“Of course!” Tom said happily “Anything for you, come on, follow me” he requested with a small wave. 

He followed Tom up the stairs and into their apartment, wringing out his fingers as he followed him. They entered and Adrien was met up with boxes and boxes of stuff, mostly labeled with the generic sharpie marks that said “Kitchen” or “Bathroom” along with a large pile that was labeled with “Marinette”. 

“Sabine?” Tom called out, in search of his wife, smiling when he saw his wife's head pop out from the bathroom “Adrien has something that he needs to talk to us about” he explained. 

“Oh hello Adrien” Sabine greeted the boy sweetly “what can we do for you?” she asked, positioning herself under the arm of her husband. 

“Well… Um… I… I-I think we should m-maybe sit down” Adrien suggested, cursing himself out for becoming a stuttering mess, only to smile as he remembered when Marinette used to be a stuttering and blabbing mess around him, even though she was an adorable babbling mess around him and right now he was just a disgustingly sweaty blubbering mess,

“...Alright…” Sabine said with slight confusion, taking a seat on the couch, closely followed by Tom. Adrien pulled one of their unboxed kitchen chairs in front of the pairs. As he sat down he took a few deep and calming breaths as he prepared himself, once again he found himself playing with his fingers and twisting around his ring, his heart racing like a track car. 

“There’s something I need to ask you two” Adrien started, his eyes focused on the hardwood floors beneath them “More so a request… well i guess it can also be considered a question, but it’s phrased like a request and I-”

“Adrien” Sabine interjected with a small smile. 

“Your rambling” Tom added softly “Just go ahead and ask what you need to ask us” he requested, leaning back against the cushions of the couch. 

“I want Marinette to move in with me” Adrien admitted, looking up and meeting the pair of eyes looking at him shocked. 

The air in the room was frozen, stale and deprived of oxygen as three pairs of eyes met and tried to gauge exactly what to say. But none of the three could find words, they were all choking on their tongues trying to figure out how they could even respond. Tom and Sabine had no air to speak and Adrien had forgotten all the words that he spent eighteen years learning, heck he would even settle for Mandarin right now, but just like that his mind was gone. Finally Tom was the first to speak, somehow able to address the request.

“No?” Tom asked himself “No, yes?” he asked again, finally regaining the sense of words “Maybe” he suggested, looking to Sabine.

“You want Marinette to move in with you?” Sabine asked, also regaining the use of her words. 

“Yes” Adrien said curtly, not trying to be rude, but unable to add anything other than a direct one word response. Sabine looked at Tom as they shared a look that came easy for them, a look that spoke volumes to both of them. 

“Adrien” Sabine started with a small sigh “You do realize that we have… certain  _ reservations  _ about  _ you _ at this current moment… right?” She asked as kindly as she possibly could, even though in Adriens ears he heard ‘lying cheating bastard’. Adrien opened his mouth to argue, but decided to let Sabine elaborate “I mean, it’s never necessarily the greatest news when we learn that our daughters new boyfriend cheated on his previous girlfriend  **with our daughter** ” she explained with slightly narrowed eyes that were tearing at Adriens very soul.

“Sabine, I don't think it’s very fair to judge Adrien on his past relationships” Tom said sheepishly, knowing that there wasn’t much else to base their statements on. 

“I think it’s very fair” Sabine replied, turning back to a flushed Adrien. 

“I can promise yo-”

“You can’t really promise anything” Sabine bit back “Whether you like it or not Adrien, you did cheat on Kagami, and our daughter is being harassed by cameras and hurtful questions every time she steps outside” she hissed angrily “I’ve heard some of the questions they ask her, and it disgusts me, if anything she’s the innocent one in this whole mess, and yet she’s the one receiving the blunt harassment and trauma from the situation” she took a deep breath “So there really aren’t many promises you can make here, are there?” she asked, looking at him through her still narrowed eyes. Tom let out a small sigh, whether he liked it or not his wife did have a small point. Adrien, on the other hand, felt his heart pang with guilt and hurt, he hadn’t known that the reporters were harassing her, or that she was being followed around, in fact he thought they were only following him around. 

“Madame Dupain-Cheng” Adrien sighed sadly “I love Marinette… truly love her, and I want to see her finish high school with everyone else, all her friends…” he had practiced that first sentence multiple times, but now he was left to improvise “but I don't really know how I’ll get through these last few months without her” he whispered, almost ashamed to be admitting that a large part of why he wanted her to stay were his own selfish reasons. 

“And yet you were fine spending a year without uttering a single syllable to her” Sabine responded, her voice biting at Adrien. He could see the anger in his eyes, an anger that was reserved for a mother that had seen her daughter hurt before, hurt by  _ someone.  _

“I…” Adrien choked, a large lump in his throat, he was hoping for a yes, ready for a no, but not even close to realizing that this outcome was a possibility. “I suppose I can understand” Adrien stated as he forced himself into a composed state (a trait he had learned from his father), he stood up and walked out of the room, stumbling slightly as he tried to calm the tremble in his step. He sat on the last step with a sigh, deciding that he didn’t want to face the press just yet, instead he wanted to stay in a pit of self pity. 

Her parents hated him, well they didn’t hate him, but they definitely knew he had been an absolute dick to their daughter. Not only had he cut her out of his life completely, but then he decided to cheat on his girlfriend with her and hurt her directly. His throat produced an angry lump as he pulled out his phone and scrolled to Marinette’s contact, deciding that only hearing her voice was the thing that would calm her down.

“Adrien?” Marinette asked, her voice slightly confused.

“Hey Mari” Adrien said with a small smile forming on his face “How are you doing?” he asked, scratching the back of his head, feeling the lump in his throat quickly disappear as he was overcome with joy.

“Since we saw each other an hour ago?” Marinette giggled, oh how Adrien loved that sound “I’m fine, just at Alya’s” she added before another voice came out of Adriens phone.

“You tell Agreste that he can have the rest of the week to have nonstop sex with you” Alya’s voice teased “But right now you’re spending time with your best friend, so he can go away” she demanded, and Adrien already saw her crossing her arms with a playful smirk. 

“Alya!” Marinette hissed “that is not what me and Adrien are doing!” she barked angrily, but her blonde haired boyfriend was already prepared to tease her.

“Oh what Marinette?” Adrien questioned with an overly exaggerated sad tone “You don't want to have nonstop sex with me for the rest of the week?” he asked with a smirk, standing up once again. 

“Adriennnn” Marinette whined “I’m... not saying that I don’t want to... wait, what am I saying” she sighed “You’re not making this any easier Adrien” she groaned “And watch your mouth now, I’m putting you on speaker” she warned, obviously setting her phone down on a table as she did something or the other. 

“Alright... are you going to be stopping by after you’re done at Alya’s?” he asked, walking around the empty bakery “I mean how are we supposed to have nonstop sex all week if we dont start soon?” he held back his laugh, failing once he heard Marinette’s groan, his laugh died down into a chuckle when Marinette responded. 

“Fine, yeah I’ll stop by after I leave Alya’s” Marinette replied, her blush almost obvious from her voice. 

“Alright, I’ll see you then?” Adrien asked, wanting nothing more than to talk to her for the rest of his life. 

“Yeah… bye” she said happily.

“Wait a minute” he called, feeling butterflies in his stomach “I love you” he said, biting his bottom lip nervously. 

“I… I-I love you t-too” Marinette replied, her voice confident but definitely surprised, yet he knew she was telling the truth as well. 

“Alright, I'll see you in a few, bye” he said, silently punching the air happily. 

“Bye” the call ended one moment after and Adrien considered going home and lying on his couch until Marinette came home…

_ Home. _

At that moment Adrien decided there was one last thing he had to do, he took a deep breath and charged back up the stairs, calming himself as he stood back in front of the door that led back towards Tom and Sabine. With one last deep breath he charged back in, receiving confused looks the moment the door opened. 

“Adrie-”

“No” Adrien interrupted Sabine, he had something to say and he was going to say it “It’s unfair of you to judge me on my past, who I was back then isn’t who I am now” he began, looking at Sabine “I was in a relationship with someone who I didn’t love, I didn’t know what love was then, how was I supposed to know?” he questioned “From a father who only showed his love by using someones most passionate emotions against them?” he asked, feeling his eyes sting “ I was stuck with a person who I thought I loved, but in the end I learned I didn’t, but I also learned that I should’ve left Marinette out of it until I was fully broken up with Kagami” he let out a sigh and turned his eyes down to the floor “I love Marinette, and I truly have no excuse as to why I stopped talking to her, I know I was an absolute jerk to her, but I’m trying to make that better, and I would like to continue with letting her move in with me” one last deep breath gave him the courage he needed to say one last thing “I  _ will  _ convince you to let her move in with me” he finished confidently, looking to her parents. Tom and Sabine shared another look, seemingly deciding on something before either of them spoke. 

“Fine” Sabine sighed “If you can convince us in one week, then you can  _ ask  _ Marinette to move in with you” She added. 

“Remember that she is the one who will have to say yes, we’re just giving you the opportunity for the chance to ask” Tom clarified, giving Adrien a small smile. 

“Thank you so much” Adrien said happily, quickly leaving before they could change their minds. He decided that now he would definitely go back to his apartment now, but there was one last lingering thought on his mind.

_ Who knows, maybe it would be his and Marinette’s apartment soon enough. _

**As always, comments are appreciated and welcome!**

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are greatly appreciated!


End file.
